


Harry Potter and Azkaban's Oldest Prisoner

by moviefan_92



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Action, Action & Romance, Action Dueling, Action/Adventure, Adventure, Adventure & Romance, Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst and Romance, Angst and Tragedy, Angst with a Happy Ending, Best Friends, Childhood Friends, Comfort, Comfort/Angst, Curse Breaking, Curses, Dark Fantasy, Dark Magic, Drama, Drama & Romance, Elemental Magic, Emotional Hurt, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Epic Friendship, F/M, Family, Family Drama, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Fantasy, Female Friendship, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gen, Harry Potter Next Generation, Heavy Angst, Hurt, Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, Magic, Magic-Users, Magical Realism, Male Friendship, Male-Female Friendship, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Muggle/Wizard Relations, Next Generation, Next-Gen, Planning Adventures, Romance, Romantic Friendship, Sorcerers, Sorceresses, Spells & Enchantments, Teen Angst, Teenage Drama, Tragic Romance, Witch Curses, Witchcraft, Witches, Wizards, Zombies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-21
Updated: 2018-12-21
Packaged: 2019-09-24 09:07:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 18
Words: 35,193
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17097686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moviefan_92/pseuds/moviefan_92
Summary: A prisoner has escaped from Azkaban, searching for a mysterious magical item and creating an army of Inferi. Harry must discover who the escaped convict is and what he is after before he does anything disastrous.Adventure/Romance/Fantasy/Friendship/Family/Drama. Rated for some violence.STORY COMPLETESequel to ‘Harry Potter and the Dark Apprentice’, and the final story in my Harry Potter series.





	1. The Final Dark Lord

**Author's Note:**

> (A/N: It has begun, my final story in the Harry Potter saga. This is my fourth Harry Potter story. The order is Harry Potter and the Search for the Horcruxes' followed by 'Harry Potter and the Dawn of a New Era' then 'Harry Potter and the Dark Apprentice'. I would suggest reading those before you read this one, although you don't have to. It's not 100 percent necessary, but some parts may get confusing if you don't. And now, without further ado, I give you 'Harry Potter and Azkaban's Oldest Prisoner'.)
> 
>  
> 
> Harry Potter and the Search for the Horcruxes:  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/17096519/chapters/40205903
> 
> Harry Potter and the Dawn of A New Era:  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/17096852/chapters/40206827
> 
> Harry Potter and the Dark Apprentice:  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/17097332/chapters/40208135
> 
> Disclaimer: I own only anything that is new; everything else belongs to J. K. Rowling.

**Originally posted on 05/02/07 - 06/23/07 at: _<https://www.fanfiction.net/s/3519763/1/Harry-Potter-and-Azkaban-s-Oldest-Prisoner>_**

 

 

**" HARRY POTTER** **AND AZKABAN'S OLDEST PRISONER "**

**Chapter 1: The Final Dark Lord**

It was rather cool for July, even though it was night. The wind whipped around, blowing leaves and twigs everywhere. A man wearing an old black cloak walked down the abandoned road. He coughed, covering his mouth with a very old wrinkled hand. Slowly he made his way home. Home? No, safe-house was a better word. This was a man that would be arrested or killed on sight. He had been sentenced to a life in Azkaban years ago.

But apparently, he had escaped. Not on his own. It would have been impossible on his own. He was the most heavily guarded.

No, he had help. By someone trying to replace Lord Voldemort as the leader of the Death Eaters. What was his name again? Ah yes, Drake Dursley. The so-called New Dark Lord.

The man laughed at the thought. The New Dark Lord, how ridiculous. He hadn't lasted long either. He was killed two years ago by his own uncle.

A shadow came over the man's face as he thought of Harry Potter; the savior of the wizarding world. The man had a mission to do. And he was not happy about it.

" _Damn Unbreakable Vow!"_  thought the man.

He knew the time would come when he would have to face the great Potter. He remembered back, almost three years ago, to the day he made the Vow.

_Azkaban Prison. It was a dreaded place, located out in the middle of the ocean. It looked like a prison from Hell. And that was exactly what it was, or as close as it could get._

" _So this is Azkaban." said a cloaked figure. "I guess those that have been here weren't exaggerating. Wouldn't you agree, Dolores?"_

_A short fat woman with a toad like face and a blank look in her eye stood by him. Umbridge nodded and the figure laughed. "I guess we should go inside."_

_They reached into their robes and brought out a bottle. Inside was a nasty liquid that smelled of cabbage. The figure drank the liquid and gagged in disgust. Almost immediately they began to change. Holding onto the wall for support the figure completed their transformation. When it was finished, they breathed a sigh of relief and pulled off their cloak. Underneath it was Arthur Weasley. Or at least, that's who they now where._

_Walking up to the giant metal door, the Mr. Weasley impostor knocked. The doors opened, and the impostor was greeted by a dementor._

" _Good day." said the impostor. "Arthur Weasley, Minister of Magic and Doloros Umbridge here to speak to a prisoner."_

_The dementor eyed the impostor suspiciously. Well not really, since dementors are blind. It definitely felt something different about the 'minister'. The impostor feared that the dementor wouldn't be fooled by the disguise, but the relaxed when it moved aside to let them pass._

" _Thank you." said the impostor._

_They made their way down the chambers of Azkaban. If it looked bad on the outside, it was ten times worse on the inside. But the impostor kept going. When they was almost at the cell they turned to the dementors following them._

" _I need to speak to him alone."_

_The dementors shook their heads, not trusting the supposed minister. The impostor drew their wands and cried out, "Expecto Patronum!" The dementors fled as a silver crow erupted from the impostor's wand._

_The impostor and Umbridge continued down the chamber until they came to the deepest darkest cell in all of Azkaban. There was a man in the cell. A very old man. His face was sunken and covered by a gray beard that was the same color as his long hair. His blue bloodshot eyes looked very tired. His skin was chalk white and extremely wrinkly, making him look like a shriveled old raisin. He eyed 'Mr. Weasley' curiously._

" _Haven't had any visitors in years." said the man in a harsh voice._

" _I believe that." said the impostor._

" _What can I do for you, minister?" asked the man._

_The impostor laughed. "I am not Arthur Weasley. It's amazing how well the Polyjuice Potion works, isn't it?"_

_The man smiled, revealing rotten teeth. "Ah, very clever. It must have taken quite an effort to brew the potion and sneak in here just to speak with me. You must really want something."_

" _That I do." said the impostor. "I'm willing to make you an offer."_

_The man raised a bushy eyebrows. "What kind of offer?"_

_The impostor grinned evilly. "I am a faithful servant of Lord Voldemort. One of his last few. All the others surrendered after his downfall."_

" _So I've heard. What's your name, friend?"_

" _Drake Dursley. But very soon I shall be known as the New Dark Lord."_

_The man laughed. "The New Dark Lord? How amusing. But I'm not concerned about who you want to be. You said you were going to make me an offer, so that means you want something from me. What is it?"_

" _If you are willing to do me a favor, I will get you out of here."_

_The man seemed thoughtful. "How?"_

" _Well first, I have your replacement right here." said Drake, pointing at Umbridge. "She's under the Imperius Curse, in case you haven't noticed. I have some more Polyjuice Potion with me. Then you shall become her and she shall become you. Once your out, I'll simply kill her and tell the guards you were dead. Then you and me shall leave. No one will miss her. She's just another witch bum I found on the streets one day in Knockturn Alley. And to think, she once worked for the ministry. She was Fudge's little helper, and now she's mine."_

_The man's eyes widened in understanding. "Ah, I see. Very clever."_

" _As much as I would like to take the credit for coming up with this plan, I can not. This is the same way a former servant of the Dark Lord escaped. I believe his name was Barty Crouch Jr. But never mind that. Do we have a deal?"_

_The man's face lit up. "We do."_

" _Not so fast." said Drake. "You have be known to be a liar and a traitor in the past. I don't know if I can trust you quite yet. Before I release you, you will make the Unbreakable Vow to obey me until you complete the task I give you. Dolores here will be our bonder as well as your replacement."_

_The man glared at Drake who just sneered. "You can still say no, and I'll leave right now and let you rot in here until the day you die. The choice is yours."_

_The man thought about it a moment. "What will you have me do?"_

_The impostor smiled more broadly. "It's simple enough. Simply kill Harry Potter."_

" _Kill Harry Potter?" repeated the man. "Very well. I shall make the Unbreakable Vow. But there is something I must do first. I dare not take any chances until my task is complete."_

_Drake eyed him suspiciously. "What task?"_

" _That is none of your concern!"_

_Drake took a moment to think about it. "How long will it take?"_

_The man shook his head. "That I can not say. But I will be as swift as possible."_

_Drake pondered on this some more. "Fine. But once your task is over, you shall kill Harry Potter."_

Yes, the man remembered that night all too well. He had been in Azkaban so long he would have done anything to get out and complete his task. A task that for nearly three years had been unsuccessful. And on top of that, Drake had been killed and his servants captured. So much for the New Dark Lord.

But it made no difference. The Unbreakable Vow still had to be fulfilled. And the man didn't really want to do it. Not because he had to kill. Oh no, he had done plenty of killing in his past. He just wasn't feeling comfortable about facing the most powerful wizard alive. But when given the choice to face Harry Potter and spending a life sentence in Azkaban, he would choose the former option.

But he couldn't be discovered. As far as everyone knew, he had been dead for nearly three years. But during these past few years, he had felt more alive than ever. After spending years in Azkaban, he couldn't dream of going back. During his long time of imprisonment, he wondered if death would be better, or if the deal he had made long ago was worth it. Not the deal with Drake, but the deal that landed him in Azkaban. He had agreed to surrender if he would not be sentenced to the Veil.

Now, after all these years of misery, he was finally free. Not completely. He was still bound to the Unbreakable Vow. Once he completed his task, which was taking much longer and was much more difficult than expected, he would then have to kill Harry Potter. Then he would truly be free. Free to take control of this world.

But that would have to wait. Right now, he needed some sleep. Tomorrow he would continue his task. He had an idea of where to go next. He was surprised that it took so long to think of it. Now the question was, how would he get into Hogwarts?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: First chapter and Harry already has an enemy. I couldn't resist giving Umbridge her fate. I so hated her, and I felt like her role in the books wasn't over yet. I'm sure you all have questions about what's going on, but all will be revealed. I will be dropping hints on events to come throughout the chapters. See if you can put them together and figure them out before I reveal them. Until next time.)


	2. Late Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Now let's take a look at how Harry and his family is doing.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 2: Late Again**

"DANNY POTTER, GET DOWN HERE THIS INSTANT!"

Fourteen year old Danny Potter poked his head out of his room. "But Mum, I can't find Venom."

"You are going to make everyone miss the train!" Ginny Potter yelled.

"Just give me five minutes." Danny called back, disappearing back into his room.

"I'll give you three!" Ginny yelled back. She heard Danny swear angrily. "And watch your language!"

Sighing she turned to her husband and daughter, Harry and Michelle Potter. "Why are we always waiting for him every year?" she asked.

Harry smirked. "I seem to remember us running late several times when we went to Hogwarts."

"Can't me and Dad just go?" begged Michelle. "I don't want to miss the train."

"We'll give him two more minutes." said Ginny.

Michelle scowled. "He better not make us miss the train."

In Danny's room, Danny himself, along with the three house elves, were searching through the room.

"Damn it Venom, where are you?" Danny muttered.

"Master Danny! Master Danny!" cried Winky. "I found him. He is under your bed."

"Under my… duh. Why didn't I look there first?" said Danny, getting on his hands and knees, and reaching under his bed. He pulled out a four foot snake. Non-venomous of course. It was a king snake. The kind that imitated the coral snake, with red bounded with black stripes along with yellow.

" _Venom, I've been looking all over for you."_  said Danny in Parseltongue.  _"What were you doing?"_

" _Sleeping."_ said the snake simply.

"DANNY, YOUR TIME IS UP!" came Ginny's voice.

"I'M COMING!" Danny called back. "Jeez. Keep your hair on." He grabbed his trunk and ran downstairs.  _"You know, Venom, you made me late."_

" _Well excuse me for being tired."_  hissed Venom.

"Danny, Venom, shut up and lets go!" cried Michelle.

"It's Venom's fault." said Danny, as he climbed into the car.

" _Was not."_  hissed Venom.

" _I wasn't speaking Parseltongue. How did you know what I said?"_  Danny hissed.

" _I may not speak human, but I'm knew what you were saying. I'm not stupid."_

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"I really thought we were going to miss the train." said Michelle, as they sat down in an empty train compartment. "I would have hexed you if we did." She glared at Venom.  _"That goes for you too."_  she added in Parseltongue,

" _Don't look at me like that._ " said Venom.  _"It's not my fault."_

" _You were hiding under the bed."_  hissed Danny.

" _Sleeping! Not hiding. Sleeping!"_

" _Whatever. You were still where I couldn't see you."_

" _Well maybe you should take better care of your pets."_  hissed Michelle.  _"And wasn't under the bed an obvious place to look?"_

" _I was in a hurry."_  snapped Danny.  _"I wasn't thinking straight."_

" _When do you?"_  hissed Michelle, with an evil smile.

"Are you guys speaking in Parseltongue again?" came a voice.

The three of the looked to see who had entered. It was Josh Longbottom and their cousin Jamie Weasley. Once Jamie saw Venom, she tensed for a second, then relaxed some. She was afraid of snakes. She had gotten better since Danny got Venom, but was still a little uncomfortable around them.

"Yeah, so?" said Michelle. "You jealous?"

Jamie shook her head, while Josh nodded. Danny and Michelle laughed, while Venom remained confused.

"I still can't believe you got a snake while Michelle has an owl." said Jamie taking a seat by Danny, and eyeing Venom nervously.

"Snow and Venom get along fine." said Danny. "Venom is, well, an 'egg-etarian'."

The others laugh at his reply. Michelle rolled her eyes.

" _That was really lame."_  she said in Parseltongue.

" _Well he is."_  Danny hissed back.  _"What else would you call it?"_

"Ok, that's really creepy." said Jamie. "Can you two please stop with the hissing noises?"

She opened up a book and began reading. Suddenly Danny got a great idea. He whispered something to Venom, who laughed and nodded.

" _Oh, you're bad."_  hissed Michelle, but she was smiling.

Danny and Venom ignored her. Venom moved right up to Jamie's ear. When his mouth was right by her ear, he flicked his tongue out. Jamie screamed as Venom's tongue flicked her ear. Everyone else laughed. Jamie got up and stormed out of the compartment.

"Jamie!" cried Danny. "Come on! We were only fooling around!"

"That was pretty mean." said Josh, wiping away a tear of laughter. "I better go see if she's alright."

"She's fine." said Danny and Michelle in unison.

Josh shrugged and went after her anyway. A few seconds later the compartment door opened and Kevin and Kelly Weasley came in.

"Danny-" cried Kevin.

"Michelle-" cried Kelly.

"Fancy-"

"Seeing-"

"You-

"Here."

"How-"

"Was-"

"Your-"

"Summer?"

Danny and Michelle chuckled. "You guys are impossible." said Danny.

"Thank you." said the twins together."

"Are these seats taken?" asked Kevin.

"Yes." Michelle replied.

"Not any more." said Kelly, as she and her brother sat down. "So Michelle, you excited about starting Hogwarts?"

"No." said Michelle sarcastically, cutting her eyes at them. "I wish I could stay at home all day and not learn magic."

The twins laughed. "Well, if that's how you feel." said Kevin. "I guess some people were meant to be muggles."

Michelle kicked him. "Of course I'm excited, you prat. Who wouldn't be?"

"Well obviously you." snickered Kevin, earning him another kick.

The compartment door opened again, and Jamie and Josh came back in.

"Out of our seats." Jamie ordered.

"Make us." said the twins.

Jamie was in no mood for their games. She pulled out her wand and pointed it at them.

"Alright, alright. Chill out." said Kevin.

"Yeah, see were leaving." said Kelly.

Just before they left, Kevin poked his head back in. "Have fun with your boyfriend."

"GET OUT!" shouted Jamie, blushing.

Danny and Michelle eyed their cousin suspiciously. "Boyfriend?" asked Danny. "You have a boyfriend?"

Jamie blushed a darker red, her eyes briefly shifting to Josh. "Well, I like someone. I just didn't tell anyone yet."

"Then how do they know?"

"Because we read her diary." said Kevin, poking his head back in. He quickly closed the door as Jamie threw a book at him.

"So who is it?" asked Michelle curiously.

"No one. It's none of your business." snapped Jamie.

"Relax." said Josh. "They're just kidding."

Jamie crossed her arms and continued to look grumpy. Josh decided to change the topic.

"So who do you think will be our new Potions teacher now that Slughorn has retired?"

"Don't know." said Danny. "Hope it's someone good. I think Dad knows who it is, but he won't tell us."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"So did Minerva find someone to replace Horace?" asked Ron.

"Yes, but she won't tell anyone who it is." replied Hermione.

Harry and Luna smirked. They had known who it would be for two years.

"What are you laughing at?" asked Ron.

"Nothing." they replied.

Hermione continued to look at them. "You know who it is, don't you."

"What gave you that idea?" said Harry.

"Yes, we know." said Luna.

Harry groaned. Luna had gone and ruined the fun. He just hoped she wouldn't ruin the surprise.

Neville's head snapped to her. "Why didn't you ever tell me?" he asked.

"Because it wouldn't be a surprise then, would it?" said Luna simply.

"How did you find out?" asked Hermione. Even now she didn't like other people knowing things she didn't.

"Me and, er, the replacement teacher went to see Minerva two years ago." Luna explained. "It was supposed to be a surprise for Harry too, but he found me and, um, the new teacher."

"I can't believe you didn't tell us, Harry." said Ron, a little disappointed.

"She didn't want me to tell you." said Harry.

"Ah ha, so it's a girl, is it?" said Hermione.

Harry mentally kicked himself. He didn't want to give away the surprise.

" _Time to change the topic."_  he thought. "Hey, since we finally got our Animagus forms under control, why don't we surprise the school." he suggested.

"Isn't one surprise enough?" asked Ron.

"I think people would panic if they saw me." said Neville.

"Take it as a complement, sweetie." said Luna. "I think it's a great idea, Harry."

"I wouldn't mind showing off a bit." said Hermione. "Lets do it."

"I think we might embarrass our kids." said Ron. "But… it's not like they don't embarrass us."

"Where do I go?" asked Michelle, getting off the train.

"With Hagrid, along with all the other first years." said Danny. "He's over there."

"Kind of hard to miss." snickered Kevin.

"First years, over here." called Hagrid. "Come on now don' be shy."

"Hey Hagrid." said Michelle. "You sound different. Your accent is a lot better."

"Thanks." replied Hagrid, grinning proudly. "Them English lessons with Olympe have been helping both of us."

"How's she and Billy anyway?" asked Michelle. Billy was Hagrid and Madam Maxime's son, who was very large in height and weight.

"Oh they've been just fine." Hagrid replied. "Billy's been real busy lately. So has Olympe. Now come on then, into the boat. We don' want ter be late to the Sorting." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: I thought it would be kind of neat to give Danny a pet snake. I gave him and Michelle the ability to control when they speak Parseltongue rather than it happening unnoticeably.)


	3. Welcome to Hogwarts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: You know, these Sorting Hat songs are really difficult to come up with. Oops, I just spoiled my own story. Enjoy it anyway!)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 3: Welcome to Hogwarts**

Jamie, who was afraid of snakes, made sure to deliberately sit across from Danny rather than next to him since Venom was resting on his shoulder.

"Wonder where our parents are." said Danny.

Josh and Jamie looked up at the teacher's table and saw that Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Luna where indeed missing.

"I heard Dad saying something to Mum about making a special entrance if your parents agreed to it."

Danny and Jamie looked at each other.

"They wouldn't." said Danny.

"Would they?" said Jamie.

The doors to the Great Hall opened. Several people screamed as a lion entered the room. Followed by a unicorn, a fox, then, flying overhead, an owl, and a phoenix. The group of animals of animals made their way up to the other teachers. The first years jumped to the side as they passed. Danny, Jamie, and Josh sank low in their seats.

"Should've known." Jamie muttered.

"My dad doesn't normally like being in the spotlight." said Danny. "Merlin knows he's been in it long enough."

"Well my parents never hesitate to show off." muttered Jamie.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Luna changed back to their human forms. Everyone clapped as the group took their seats. Once everyone quieted down, McGonagall got to her feet.

"Thank you for that impressive display." she said. "It appears I'm no longer the only Animagus."

The students laughed. McGonagall raised her hand to silence them. Something her lost love Albus Dumbledore used to do so well.

"Now then, before the Sorting begins, it seems we have an opening for our Potions teacher since our dear Horace Slughorn has retired… for the second time."

Everyone laughed again. Even McGonagall cracked a smile. "I am happy, however, to announce that we have found a new one. One of the most brilliant students I've ever taught. Please welcome…"

The doors to the Great Hall opened again. At first no one thought anyone came in. Then they spotted a ginger cat . Danny, Jamie, and Josh eyed the cat suspiciously.

"You don't think…" said Danny.

"Couldn't be." said Jamie.

"Venom, do you know anything about this?" Danny hissed.

" _Oh, that's no cat."_  Venom replied.  _"That's… well, you'll see."_

The cat went up to the other teachers. It winked at Michelle as it passed. Ron, Hermione, and Neville turned to Harry and Luna, who were grinning.

"Harry, is that?" Hermione whispered.

"Just wait." he whispered back.

The cat changed back into a person. McGonagall finished the introduction. "Professor Ginny Potter, the new Potions teacher."

"No way!" exclaimed Josh.

"Aunt Ginny s going to be our teacher?" gasped Jamie. "Wicked!"

"Why didn't she tell me?" said Danny.

"She probably wanted it to be a surprise." said Jamie. "And from the looks of it my parents and Josh's dad, they didn't know either."

"Thank you, Minerva." said Ginny. "It's good to be back."

She took her seat next to Harry and kissed him on the cheek. She turned to Ron, Hermione, and Neville who were staring at Ginny with their mouths open.

"What?" she asked innocently.

"We'll tell you about it later." said Harry, as he got up to call the students to try on the Sorting Hat. But first, the Hat had its traditional Hogwarts song to sing.

_I remember way back when,_

_Hogwarts school first started,_

_all the students who began_

_and all those that departed._

_Each one of you is unique_

_in their own special way._

_So come on down and put me on,_

_and I'll tell you where to stay._

_I'll always know where you should go_

_and you soon shall see,_

_that I am right as usual_

_and you're where you should be._

_If bravery is your strong point,_

_to Gryffindor you'll go._

_Bravery is a real great skill,_

_as you soon shall know._

_If I look and I see_

_a large amount of cunning,_

_to Slytherin you will go_

_and you'll gladly join the running._

_Intelligence is also a skill_

_that is really great too._

_For in Ravenclaw you will learn_

_how to pull through and through._

_Hufflepuff is now last,_

_but surely not the least._

_Your loyalty will hold you strong,_

_even in the eye of a beast._

_So wait no more, and come on down,_

_I'm really anxious to see,_

_what house that you belong in_

_to achieve your victory._

McGonagall had to shoot off a few fireworks to get the room silent. But once everyone had quieted down, the sorting began.

Several minutes later, Michelle was sitting beside Danny at the Gryffindor table, and the feast began. Of course Peeves had to come and ruin it. He flew up and down the tables with salt and pepper shakers, pouring the over the student's heads.

"If pepper is in the hands of Peevesy, he'll use it to make you all sneezey."

"You'll get used to him." Danny whispered to his sister who was brushing salt and pepper out of her hair.

"I'm not getting used to that, because I'm not going to put up with it." snapped Michelle angrily.

Pulling out her wand, Michelle made all the spilled salt and pepper blow at Peeves like a sand storm. The students laughed as the Poltergeist began sneezing.

"Remind me never to annoy her." Josh said.

"I heard that." said Michelle, grinning evilly. "And you better not annoy me, unless you want to face my wrath."

" _She's been here half an hour and she thinks she's so good."_  Danny told Venom.

"I can understand you, you know." snapped Michelle. "And I'll bet I do better in classes than you did."

"Oh really?"

"Yes really."

"Wanna bet."

"Sure."

"Fine then." Danny thought about it a moment. "Ok, if you score better on your exams than I did, I'll give you, er 10 Galleons. But if I do better, you give me 10 Galleons."

Michelle smiled. "Deal. Does this continue every year?"

"We'll decide that when the time comes."

Jamie and Josh exchanged nervous looks before returning to their dinner. Best to just let it play out.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"How great is this?" said Danny, as he climbed into bed. "All our parents teaching here."

"Really cool." agreed Josh. "I thought your mum was a Curse Breaker?"

"She was." Danny replied. "But she quit about a month ago. Said there was something else she wanted to do, but there was no opening. I can't believe I didn't figure it out. She was always saying how she wanted to be a teacher here. She'll be a good one too." He yawned. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow. Night."

"Good night." said Josh.

" _Night Venom."_

" _Good night master."_

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Harry and Ginny were in their new room, snuggling together on the couch.

"Did you see Ron's face." laughed Ginny. "He was shocked."

"I was surprised myself when I first found out." said Harry. "But I can't think of anyone better for the job. You did so good on your N.E.W.T.s. What were your scores again?"

"Hmm, I believe it was an 'O' in Defense Against the Dark Arts, Care For Magical Creatures, Potions, Charms, and Transfiguration. An 'E' in Astronomy, Herbology, and History of Magic. And an 'A' in Divination."

Harry smiled. "That's better than I did. And I can't believe you got an 'E' in History of Magic and an 'A' Divination. I could barely stay awake in those classes."

Ginny laughed. "Just one of the many things I'm better than you at."

Harry smiled some more and breathed in her flowery scent. "I'm glad you're here, Gin. I missed you when I had to leave. Now we'll be together more often."

Ginny laughed again. "I missed you too. Even though we still saw each other everyday."

"That wasn't enough for me."

"Me either."

"I love you, Gin. And I'm so happy for you."

"Thank you, Harry. I love you too."

"You know, there's this muggle song I just remembered that reminds me of you."

"Oh really." smirked Ginny. "Care to sing it for me?"

Harry smiled and began singing.  _"You are my sunshine. My only sunshine. You make me happy, when skies are gray. You'll never know dear, how much I love you. So please don't take my sunshine away."_

Ginny sighed into his shoulder. "That was beautiful."

"It's true, Gin." said Harry. "You're my sunshine. I can always count on you to make me happy when I'm feeling down. And you'll never know how much I love you."

"Sure I will." said Ginny. "Because I love you just as much. Always have, always will. And nothing will ever change that."

The two of them kissed passionately, before falling asleep in each other's arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: I'm not that good at romantic stuff so sorry if things get a little too sappy.)


	4. First Classes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: I know everyone one is anxious to find out who Azkaban's Oldest Prisoner is, but I'm afraid that won't be revealed for quite a while. Sorry. But I hope that doesn't decrease the interest anyone has in my story.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 4: First Classes**

Harry woke up to find Ginny already ready for her first day, looking a little anxious.

"Good morning, my sunshine." said Harry.

Ginny smiled. "You going to start calling me your sunshine now?"

"Does it bother you?"

Ginny shook her head. "No, I like it."

She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. Harry sensed something was wrong.

"You ok, Gin?"

Ginny sighed. "Just a little nervous for my first day. I hope I do good. Oh, will the kids like me?"

"Ginny, look at me." said Harry. "I was nervous my first day too. I didn't know if I would be a good teacher, if the kids would like me, or if I would be able to take the pressure of dealing with all those kids. Merlin knows Danny and Michelle are enough trouble; I don't know how Ron and Hermione deal with five."

Ginny laughed. Harry smiled. He loved hearing her laugh and seeing her smile. It always made him feel good. "You're going to be a great teacher. Everyone knows it. You're the best person for the job." He tilted her head up to look at him. "You'll do fine."

Ginny smiled and kissed him.

"You're right, Harry." she said. "Guess I was letting it get to me."

"Is that why you were up so early?" smirked Harry. "Come on, lets get some breakfast before Ron eats it all."

Michelle made her way to her first class. Potions. And her mum was the teacher. This only made it all the more exciting. Ginny was waiting outside the classroom door, greeting all the students.

"Morning, Mum." said Michelle happily.

"Good morning to you to." said Ginny. "And right now I'm your teacher. So you're to refer to me as Professor Potter."

"Oh, anything you say, Professor." snickered Michelle. "Why didn't you tell me you were going to teach?"

"Don't you like surprises?"

"Of course."

"Well, surprise!"

Michelle rolled her eyes and entered the class. Ginny came in a minute or two later.

"Good morning class!" she said cheerfully.

"Good morning, Professor Potter!"

"As you all know, today is my first day as well as yours. So lets just have some fun today. Everyone take out your copies of  _'Potion Making: Year One'_  and choose something interesting. Just pick something simple. If you can make something without using the book, it will earn you extra credit. And don't worry if you don't do it right the first time.

"Tomorrow we'll begin with an actual lesson. Today, I just want to get to know you all a bit and see how advanced your potion making skills are. Some skills will come naturally to some of you, while others may need a little more help. If you need anything, feel free to ask.

"Ok then, if everyone is ready, you may begin."

The class immediately began scanning through the books for something that looked good. Michelle picked the Common Cold Cure. A simple potion that did just what the name stated, cure the common cold. It was easy enough to make, the only problem was the time, which Michelle didn't think she had enough of.

"What the heck." she said, and began gathering ingredients.

Overall the class went by very well. Ginny walked around the room asking students their names and what potions they were making.

Michelle added the final ingredient when Ginny called for the class to stop. Her Common Cold Cure, which was supposed to be a clear blue, was still bright green. She magically stirred it, by twirling her finger to spin the wooden spoon, underneath her cauldron.

By the time her potion turned turquoise Ginny was halfway to her cauldron. Michelle spun her finger faster. Ginny was two cauldrons away when it turned the clear blue described. She turned to her daughter and looked in her cauldron.

"Oh, very impressive, Michelle." Ginny congratulated her daughter. "The Common Cold Cure. And it's finished too, excellent!"

Michelle smiled happily as Ginny moved on.

"Ok then, I think today went very well." said Ginny. "So, class dismissed, and ten points to everyone who completed their potions."

The class exited the room. When everyone else left, Michelle ran up to her mother and hugged her.

"You did great Mum. Er… I mean, Professor." Michelle giggled.

Ginny smiled and hugged her daughter tightly. "Thank you, sweetie. You did very good for your first day too. And now you have a Common Cold Cure, so you or your brother can't use that as an excuse to get out of classes. Now come on. You don't want to be late for your second class."

While Ginny was quickly becoming a favorite teacher in no time, everyone's favorite teacher entered his own class to begin his first lesson of a new year.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"Good morning, class." said Harry. "Glad to see you all back."

"Wish I could say the same." Danny heard Cheryl Malfoy mutter.

"Shut up, Cheryl." whispered Danny.

Harry heard his son and his most hated rival's daughter having a silent argument, but ignored them. He remembered what it was like with him and Draco Malfoy, so he let it go… for now.

"Well, since you all know me and I know all you, lets begin." said Harry. "Now, last year we learned a verity of spells. All very useful and effective in a duel. But there are ways to use these spells and how to power them. So who can tell me what powers the spells we use?"

Jamie, taking very much after her mother, had her hand up in the air faster than everyone else. Harry smiled and called on her.

"Our emotions." she stated. "While we can perform the spells in a controlled environment, the emotions that are affecting us help to power the spells to give us a stronger magical defense or attack."

"Very good." said Harry. "Five points to Gryffindor."

"Yeah, favor your family, why don't you." hissed Cheryl.

She said it quietly, but Harry still heard her, and it made him mad. He  _never_  favored students and gave them special treatment. Unlike  _some_  teachers that Harry met while he was still a student.

"Now who can tell me the emotion that is strongest and gives our spells the biggest boost?"

Jamie had her hand up first again.

"Yes, Miss Weasley."

"Love." said Jamie.

"Excellent, five more points to Gryffindor."

Cheryl turned to a fellow Slytherin. "I would 'love' to cast a few spells at this poor excuse of a teacher."

"Who can tell me, the difference of having your spells powered by righteous anger and spells powered by an anger with a thirst for revenge?" said Harry. A little anger could be heard in his voice.

Jamie put her hand up, but Josh beat her.

"Mr. Longbottom."

"Righteous anger spells are powered by the desire to help those you care for and to put a stop to danger, while anger with a desire for revenge is just a way to unleash your hatred on a person or thing." Josh replied.

"Blah, blah, blah." muttered Cheryl. "Boring."

"And how do the two affect our magic?" asked Harry, now losing his patience. "Mr. Potter."

"One has dark magic powering it while the other has love powering it." said Danny.

Cheryl snorted. "This class is so dull. We need a real teacher."

"Miss Malfoy!" growled Harry. "Perhaps if you would pay attention you wouldn't find my class so dull! But if you think there is a way for me to improve my teaching skills, please tell me. I wouldn't want my class to be boring."

The class snickered. Cheryl didn't say anything. She just continued to glare at Harry.

"I know what may hold your attention." said Harry. "You're obviously bored because you're more advanced. So, why don't we have a little duel?"

Everyone in the class sat up straighter. Even Cheryl looked excited. Harry smiled. "Yes, I thought that would get your attention. So who would like to duel Miss Malfoy?"

Everyone in the class, unsurprisingly, raised their hand.

"Well we can't possibly have time for everyone to duel. So we'll choose someone. Once the duel is over, the winner may duel someone else. We'll see how many we can fit in before class ends. How does that sound?" Everyone nodded excitedly. "So Miss Malfoy, does this sound more enjoyable?" Cheryl nodded. "Ok then, choose your opponent."

Cheryl didn't think twice. She pointed at Danny.

" _Who couldn't see that coming?"_  Danny thought sarcastically.

"Alright then." said Harry. "Mr. Potter, Miss Malfoy, come on down."

Danny and Cheryl went to the front of the class. Harry moved everything out of the way and put shields up around the room.

"Ok, first thing you do is bow to each other." said Harry.

Danny and Cheryl merely nodded their heads. Harry rolled his eyes but let it go.

"Alright. Nothing dangerous or illegal, just a verity of hexes and jinxes. Ready… and… DUEL!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: You all knew it was inevitable, a duel between those two. Next chapter is going to be good, I can't wait to start it.)


	5. A Long Expected Duel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. I hope you like it.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 5: A Long Expected Duel**

" _Expelliarmus!"_  cried Danny and Cheryl at the same time.

The spells collided and canceled each other out.

" _Terreo!"_  cried Cheryl.

" _Protego!"_  Danny blocked the spell.  _"Truculenter Ventus!"_

Cheryl was thrown backwards by a powerful wind and came crashing down hard on her back.

" _Glacialis Cometes!"_  she cried.

A large ball of ice flew from the end of her wand.

"I said nothing dangerous!" shouted Harry.

But Danny was ready.  _"Intendo Muto!"_

The ball of ice flew back at Cheryl who shouted  _"Inflammo Exustio!"_

Flames shot from the end of her wand like a flamethrower. The ball of ice exploded once the fire made contact. Harry was about to scold her again for using dangerous spells, but she wasn't using the spell on Danny.

" _Dens Caries!"_

A dark green light fired from the end of Cheryl's wand. Danny was hit. His teeth began to rot, causing him great pain in his mouth.

" _Petrificus Totalus!"_  he cried through the pain.

Cheryl rolled out of the way and jumped to her feet.

" _Stupefy!"_

She missed.

" _Levicorpus!"_  thought Danny. He was sure Cheryl didn't know this spell.

Cheryl was lifted off the ground. No she didn't know the spell, but she knew how to copy it.

" _Magus Imitor!"_

Danny was lifted off the ground too by Cheryl's magic imitation spell.

" _Obdormio!"_  he cried.

" _Finite!_ " shouted Cheryl, pointer her wand at herself.

She dropped down and Danny's spell missed her.

" _Confundo!"_

Danny suddenly became very confused. He fired a stunner at Cheryl, but missed by several feet.

" _Wingardium Leviosa!"_  shouted Cheryl.

Danny flew through the air and slammed into the wall. He banged his head hard enough to knock the sense back into him that Cheryl's Confundus Charm knocked out off him.

" _Saeta Degenero!"_

Cheryl was hit by the Hair Loss Curse. Her shiny black hair started falling out. She became enraged when she realized this.

" _Reducto!"_  she shouted.

Danny managed to avoid the spell.

"Twenty points from Slytherin!" shouted Harry angrily. "I said nothing dangerous!"

" _Relashio!"_  cried Danny.

Cheryl backed away from the sparks shooting out of Danny's wand.

" _Sordesco Feteo!"_  she cried.

Danny suddenly smelled like he hadn't showered in over a month. Several students backed away as Danny's foul odor hit their nostrils.

"You need a bath, Potter." sneered Cheryl.

"Ha, ha, very funny." snapped Danny. "I'll give you something to laugh at  _Rictusempra!"_

" _Protego! Silencio!"_

" _Protego! Orchideous!"_  Flowers flew out of Danny's wand.  _"Oppugno!"_

The flowers flew at Cheryl and stuck to her.  _"Impedimenta!"_  she cried, swatting the annoying flowers aside.

Danny was thrown backwards.  _"Langlock!"_  he shouted, while still in midair, which unfortunately caused him to miss.

" _Immobulus!"_  cried Cheryl.

Danny rolled away. He pointed his wand at a rather heavy book.  _"Wingardium Leviosa!"_

The book hit Cheryl in the head. She stumbled backwards giving Danny the time he needed.

" _Barba!"_

Cheryl was hit. A long beard and bushy mustache grew on her face. The class roared with laughter.

" _Caecus Oculus!"_  Cheryl bellowed, now seriously angry.

Danny was hit. He lost sight in his left eye. His temporary blindness could last for hours.

"Detention!" shouted Harry. What was so hard about not performing anything dangerous or illegal? The Blind Eye Curse was indeed illegal; though not as bad as the Unforgivable Curses. Harry considered ending the duel before things got out of hand. He remembered his past duels with Malfoy that hadn't turned out so well. He decided that the next time someone does something dangerous he would stop the duel.

" _Furnunculus!"_  shouted Danny. He still had vision in his right eye and he would use that one to continue dueling.

Big nasty boils began to break out over Cheryl's face, hands, and most likely the rest of her body.

" _Vomito!"_  she cried.

Danny was about to cast another spell, but was hit by Cheryl's. He began throwing up uncontrollably, quite unable to speak. Cheryl took his inability to speak as an advantage.

" _Creo Calculus!"_

Small pebbles began rapidly firing from her wand. Danny cried out in pain as stone after stone struck him.

"That's it!" yelled Harry. "If you're going to continue using dangerous spells this duel is over."

"No, Dad." gasped Danny. "I got this.  _Coloro Puniceus!"_

Cheryl turned purple. The class once again roared with laughter.

" _Incarcerous!"_

Ropes shot out of Cheryl's wand.

" _Diffindo!"_  cried Danny.

He cut the ropes before he was bound. Harry would have considered it a dangerous spell if it had been used against Cheryl. But since it was just used to cut through the ropes, Harry let it go.

" _Magus Mora!"_  Danny cried.

Cheryl was hit with the Magical Delaying Charm.

" _Stupefy!"_  Cheryl cried.

Her spell took twice as long to fire, giving Danny enough time to dodge.

" _Densaugeo!"_  Cheryl cried.

Danny, whose teeth were already rotten to the core, had no intention of letting his teeth get any worse. Luckily, his spell gave him enough time to once again dodge the spell.

" _Time to end this."_  thought Danny.  _"And I know how."_

He pointed his wand at Cheryl and cried,  _"Angelus Animi!"_

A purplish pinkish light caught Cheryl in the chest. She flew backwards and landed several feet away. A few seconds later she got to her feet. She had a look on her face that no one would have ever expected Cheryl Malfoy to have. A loving look.

"I surrender." she said, tossing her wand aside. "You win Danny. You're a great wizard." Several people snickered while those that didn't know what the spell was were confused by Cheryl's behavior. "Thank you for letting us duel, Professor. You're a great teacher."

She turned back to the class and skipped merrily back to her desk. Harry had to try very hard to hide the smile on his face. A failed attempt.

"Excellent job you two." he said "Fifty points to both Gryffindor and Slytherin. Well done. So who can tell me the spell Mr. Potter used to defeat Miss Malfoy? Miss Weasley can, of course."

"Angelus Animi." said Jamie. "It's Latin for 'Angel at Heart'. It basically causes the person to become all lovie dovie, by briefly blocking out all negative thoughts and actions and bringing forth happy and joyful emotions."

"Very good. And as we can see by Miss Malfoy's… er, behavior that it was successful. Well it looks like we're out of time, so I'll see you all tomorrow. Mr. Potter, Miss Malfoy, come here please."

As everyone else cleared out Danny and Cheryl approached Harry. He waved his wand over them and saying  _"Sano!"_  Most Danny and Cheryl's injuries healed.

"I'm afraid I'm not quite the healer Madam Pomfrey is." said Harry. "So why don't you two pay a visit to the Hospital Wing."

"Ok, see ya, Dad." said Danny.

Before Cheryl left she said something she never would have considered saying under normal circumstances.

"I'm sorry I was so rude while you were teaching, Professor. I really do like your class. Everyone does. Even though a lot of us Slytherins say we don't."

"Well thank you, Miss Malfoy." said Harry, trying to hold back his laughter. "Now you better hurry along to the Hospital Wing."

"Yes, sir." said Cheryl, and she skipped out of the room.

Harry finally burst out laughing. He didn't want to be around Cheryl when the spell was lifted.

"You're turning out just like your father." said Madam Pomfrey as she removed all of Cheryl's spells and healed Danny's wounds. "I have a feeling I'm going to see you as much as I did him."

"I'm honored." said Danny.

"Alright, you may go." said Madam Pomfrey. "Miss Malfoy, you're next."

Cheryl had been standing in the corner humming and playing with her beard. Danny figured he had better get a head start before she was back to her old self. About 30 seconds after he left Cheryl's voice was heard from the Hospital Wing.

"POTTER, I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"

Danny laughed and ran down the stairs. He ran into Jamie and Josh.

"There you are." said Josh.

"Danny that was incredible." laughed Jamie. "Cheryl looked like a purple dwarf by the time you finished with her."

Danny smirked. "I had been looking forward to that for a long time.

"How's your eye?"

"Visions still a little blurry, but things are getting clearer."

"Yo, Danny!"

Kevin, Kelly, Jack, and Alexis came running up to them.

"We just heard." said Kevin.

"Word travels fast." said Danny.

"You're my new hero." said Kelly.

"She really had it coming." said Alexis.

"Took the words right out of my mouth." said Jack.

"We're having a party in the common room later tonight." said Kevin. "This is defiantly something to celebrate over."

"POTTER!"

Cheryl came storming down the stairs looking furious. She had her wand out and pointing at Danny.

"NO ONE MAKES A FOOL OUT OF ME, POTTER!" Cheryl bellowed. "LEAST OF ALL YOU, POTTER!"

Kevin and Kelly stepped in front of Danny.

"You mess with Danny-" said Kevin.

"And you mess with us." finished Kelly.

"Out of the way Weasley!" growled Cheryl. "You're already a disgrace to the name of wizard!"

"What's that mean?" snapped Alexis.

"Your whole family are blood traitors." sneered Cheryl. "But the biggest mistake your family made was marrying a Mudblood."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY!?" shouted Kevin and Kelly while everyone else gasped.

"You heard me." hissed Cheryl. "Marrying a Mud-"

" _Vescor Fimus!"_

Cheryl was thrown forward. Standing behind her was Michelle looking furious.

"Bitch!" Michelle hissed.

Cheryl looked up angrily at Michelle. She opened her mouth to say something, but covered it with her had. She looked like she was going to be sick. A moment later, she was. She spit up a foul smelling brown blob. Everyone laughed as Cheryl threw up another blob. Quickly getting to her feet, she ran back to the Hospital Wing. The others heard her throw up again.

"Nice one Michelle." laughed Danny. "Where did you learn that?"

"In a book called  _'Jinxes for Jerks'."_  said Michelle, putting her wand away.

"What spell was that?" asked Kevin. "It looked handy."

"Believe me, you don't want to know." laughed Jamie.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: This chapter was mostly about giving me a chance to make up spells. Remember, this is several years from the time Harry was a student, it's only natural that new spells would be discovered. Here's a list of my spells and their meanings.
> 
> Inflammo Exustio - set fire to
> 
> Angelus Animi - angle at heart
> 
> Dens Caries - tooth decay
> 
> Magus Imitor - imitate magic
> 
> Terreo - to frighten
> 
> Coloro Puniceus - color purple
> 
> Saeta Degenero - Hair fall off
> 
> Obdormio - to fall asleep.
> 
> Creo Calculus - create pebbles
> 
> Magus Mora - magical delay
> 
> Glacialis Cometes - icy comet
> 
> Truculenter Ventus - wild wind
> 
> Vescor Fimus - eat dung
> 
> Vomito - vomit
> 
> Barba - beard
> 
> Sordesco Feteo - bad oder
> 
> Caecus Oculus - blind eye
> 
> Intendo Muto - change direction
> 
> Sano - heal.
> 
> Well that's all for now. I'll have a few others later on. Until next time.)


	6. Hagrid's Deep Sea Creature Lesson

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: No more finals! Class is over! Hip hip hoorah! But sadly, I have a summer class starting next week. Sigh
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 6: Hagrid's Deep Sea Creature Lesson**

The enchanted shovel continued to dig as Azkaban's oldest prisoner sat on a tombstone nearby. He was too old to be digging into the ground in the middle of the night. Not that he needed to. He was magic after all.

A loud  _thud_  noise came from in the hole and the shovel stopped digging. The man approached the freshly dug up grave and levitated the coffin out. He opened it to find a long dead corpse.

Pointing his wand at the body he cried,  _"Corpus Imperium!"_  The corpse twitched. The eyes opened, seeing for the first time in months, maybe years. A moan escaped the reanimated body's throat as the newly created Inferi crawled out of the coffin.

"Rise, my servant." said the man. "Join your brothers at my side."

The Inferi slowly walked over to join a crowd of about fifty Inferi. The graveyard wasn't that big, and it would be empty before the night was over.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"Good morning, class!" cried Hagrid cheerfully. "Got a real special treat for yeh all today. Had to pull a few strings cause the Ministry didn't like it too much, but I know some people."

"By people he means your grandfather." whispered Danny.

Jamie smiled and nodded. "I just hope it's not like the anything we had last month."

"Now then, the creatures I'm about to show yeh live in the deepest parts of the ocean." said Hagrid. "It was really hard getting them transported here so I hope yeh enjoy it. They are some of the rarest and most dangerous creatures in the sea. But they've jus' been fed and they're only a few months old, so they're not that aggressive, but ye still want ter be careful with them."

"Sir, if these creatures live in the ocean, how did you get them here?" asked a student.

"Dragons." replied Hagrid. "Had ter transport an entire tank. Lets say I know some people."

"By people he means Uncle Charlie." said Danny.

"Now then, if you would all follow me."

Hagrid led them around Hogwarts to an area that had three very large fish tanks, about thirty feet each, covered in giant sheets.

"Alright, now a thing to remember is to not fear them." Hagrid explained. "They can smell it. And even though they've been fed, they can still be dangerous. So say hello to our first guest."

Hagrid pulled the sheet off the first tank. Inside was what looked like a 10 foot eel, only much more vicious looking. The tank was obviously magically expanded on the inside to give the creature more room. Several people gasped while others seemed amazed.

"Now who can tell me what this is?" Hagrid asked.

Both Jamie and Josh put up their hands. Josh beat Jamie and Hagrid called on him.

"It's a Leviathan." said Josh. "A very rare, very dangerous deep sea monster. They can get up to 80 feet or more."

"Very good, 10 points ter Gryffindor." said Hagrid. "Now this one is still a baby so it most likely won't attack yeh unless threatened. They mostly depend on their parents for food, but if they get hungry enough they might take a bite out of a weaker creature. This is why you can' show it your fear. It will pick up on it and think you're easy prey. Now who can tell me what this next one is?"

He pulled the sheet off the second tank. More gasps were heard and one girl screamed. The tank contained a very large octopus, or so it seemed. Its body was at least 8 feet, not counting its tentacles, which were about 12 feet long each. Hagrid called on a Hufflepuff student who had his hand up.

"It's an octopus."

Hagrid chuckled. "Well yes, and no. It is related ter them. I'll give Hufflepuff 5 points. Does anyone no what it actually… yes, Miss Weasley."

"It's a Kraken." exclaimed Jamie. "They can get over to be 200 feet, not counting the length of their tentacles. They're very aggressive and have been known to sink ships. The largest one in history, and it's still unknown to this day as to how it got so big, was 2 and a half miles long from head to tentacle."

"Yes, very good. Ten points ter Gryffindor." said Hagrid. "And yes, they have been known to sink ships. Unfortunately the muggles discovered one Kraken attack which became a legend. But we've gotten better control over them since then."

"I thought they were extinct." said another student.

"Yes, a lot of people do." said Hagrid. "And they're very close to extinction. It's a shame. They're beautiful creatures."

"I don't know about that." whispered Jamie.

Danny and Josh nodded in agreement. "They're fascinating, but I don't know about beautiful." said Josh.

"Moving on to our last one then." said Hagrid. "This one's my favorite. Saved him for last."

Hagrid pulled off the final sheet. Several people screamed. The creature in the tank resembled a dragon without wings. And that was exactly what it was. Jamie had her hand in the air faster than everyone else.

"Miss Weasley, care to tell the class what this is?" said Hagrid.

"It's an Icedrake. A wingless water dragon. They breath ice instead of fire."

"Take 10 more points for Gryffindor. Yes, this is indeed an Icedrake. And since they like the cold, this water has been magically made to be much colder than usual."

"No wonder it's his favorite." said Josh. "It's a dragon."

Danny and Jamie snickered. Everyone knew Hagrid loved dragons.

"Well now that ye've met them, who wants to get in?" asked Hagrid.

Danny's mouth dropped open. Did he hear right? Get in? With those things? He looked to Jamie and Josh. They seemed just as surprised at Hagrid's request.

"You expect us to swim with these things?" asked Cheryl in disbelief. She tapped one of the tanks. The Leviathan snapped its jaws at her, making her jump back.

"Don' do that!" snapped Hagrid. "They don' like that sound. And yes, I expect yeh to swim with them. I did and nothin' happened ter me."

"Would you care to tell me why we're going to be swimming with some of the most dangerous creatures in the sea?" asked Cheryl.

"This is Care for Magical Creatures." growled Hagrid. "You're supposed to learn how to take care of Magical Creatures. Even if they're dangerous."

Danny, as much as he hated to admit it, was on Cheryl's side. And from the looks on Jamie and Josh's faces, so were they.

"Who takes care of dangerous things like these?" he whispered.

Jamie shrugged. "I guess someone has to deal with them, in case of an attack."

"Now then, all yeh have to do is put on your wet suits, magically clean they're tanks, and I'll give an extra 10 points to whoever touches them. Just remember, don't let them think you're afraid."

The lesson wasn't as bad as Danny thought. He successfully managed to clean his tank and even had the nerve to pat one of the Kraken's tentacles. Most students only cleaned the tank and got out as fast as possible. None of the creatures attacked, although the Leviathan did snap at some people, one of them being Cheryl.

"Very good everyone." cried Hagrid. "Ten points to everyone and an extra ten to everyone who touched their sea creature. Class dismissed. And be sure to return the wet suits."

The class began to leave when Hagrid stopped Danny.

"Something wrong, sir?" he asked.

Hagrid shook his head. "No, no, nothin' at all. Just wanted ter ask a favor."

"Oh, sure. What's up?"

"Can you ask your dad to meet me at my house after classes? I got something important to talk to him about."

"Ok, I'll give him the message. What's the problem?"

Hagrid waved it aside. "Oh, nothin' for yeh to worry about. Now run along. Time waits for no one."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"Hello, my sunshine." said Harry as Ginny came into their room. "How was your day?"

"I've had better." sighed Ginny.

"What happen?" asked Harry, although he had a feeling he knew already. "Kevin and Kelly?"

"Of course." said Ginny, but she was unable to hide the smile on her face.

Harry rolled his eyes. "What did they do this time?"

Ginny smiled some more. "They decided to magically change the directions for the potions they were making. It resulted in three cauldrons melting, four exploding, two students passing out, and five more students having rather nasty reactions to the fumes they were breathing in."

Harry rolled his eyes. Kevin and Kelly were as bad as Fred and George; in some ways even worse.

"And their potions turned out perfect." he said.

"Yup." said Ginny. "But I didn't have the heart to give them detention."

"Why not?"

"Hermione found out."

Harry winced. He was glad he wasn't Kevin or Kelly at the moment. Hermione could be as strict as Mrs. Weasley, and sometimes even more. It wasn't really a surprise considering she  _was_  a Weasley.

"How about you?" asked Ginny, sitting next to him on the couch. "How was your day?"

Harry shrugged. "Same as usual. Michelle continues to surprise me. She's as strong as you when you were his age."

Ginny laughed. "I wasn't that strong in my first year. I actually don't want to think about my first year."

"Ginny you know that none of that was your fault." said Harry. "No one got hurt, and if it wasn't for you, we might never had gotten hold of the Diary."

"I know." said Ginny. "I just shudder to think of what might have happened."

"Perhaps this will make you feel better." said Harry.

He leaned over and kissed her.

"Better?" he asked.

Ginny smiled. "I'm not sure. Why don't you try again?" she said playfully.

Harry smiled back and kissed her again. Things were beginning to heat up when a knock came at their door.

"Damn." they said together.

Harry got up and opened the door.

"Hey, Dad." said Danny.

"Hello Danny." said Harry. "What brings you here. You need help with the homework I assigned."

"You assigned homework?" asked Danny.

"Danny!"

"I'm just kidding, Dad. I already finished it. Or I will soon. I just have to start it. Anyway, Hagrid asked me to ask you to meet him at his hut. He said it was something important."

Harry nodded. "Ok, thanks. I'll go see him right away."

"Night, Dad. Night, Mum." said Danny as he left the room.

"Wonder what's wrong." said Harry.

Ginny shrugged. "Maybe that's why he wasn't at dinner. You better go see him. I'll be here when you get back." she said seductively and winked.

Harry walked over to here and kissed her. "Then I'll see you later tonight."

He exited their room and made his way down to Hagrid's.

" _Wonder what's so important."_  he thought.  _"Oh well, I'll find out soon enough."_  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: What could Hagrid want? NOT TELLING! Not now anyway. And what about Azkaban's oldest prisoner? That you'll have to wait on too. See ya next time.)
> 
> Corpus Imperium- corpse control


	7. Hagrid's Concern

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Hello again. Thanks for the reviews. Now I shall provide you all with the next chapter.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 7: Hagrid's Concern**

"Harry, good to see ya." said Hagrid. "Come in, come in."

Harry walked into Hagrid's hut and was greeted by a terrible smell. Hagrid chuckled at the look on Harry's face.

"Yeah I know. Smells kind of bad." said Hagrid. "It's the school cabbages. Had ter move them inside cause them damn flesh eating slugs keep getting to them. Shame they went bad. Just bought the repellent for them too."

Harry laughed. "You must really be a good gardener if they keep coming back every year."

Hagrid shrugged. "Don't know, they always eat up the garden. Sorry about the smell. You get used to it after a while. Here, maybe this will help."

Hagrid waved his wand and freshened up the room. "That's better. Now how about something ter drink from my special stash."

He opened up a cupboard at took out a bottle of wine. He took off the cork and sniffed before taking a drink. "Bad year." said Hagrid making a face before taking out another. "Ah, here we go." He took out anther bottle and took a sip. "This will do." He poured a glass for himself then started to pour one for Harry.

"Hagrid, I don't drink remember." said Harry. Even if he did he wouldn't have wanted any after Hagrid drank from it.

"Ah right. Um, tea then?"

"Yes, please."

He poured Harry a cup of tea then sat down on the couch.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" asked Harry, taking a sip of his tea.

"It's probably something silly, but something I thought I should mention." said Hagrid. "Last weekend I went ter Knockturn Alley to buy flesh eating slug repellant. Never got to use it though. Anyway, I passed Borgin and Burkes and saw Borgin polishing the cup of Hufflepuff. That there was one of Voldemort's Horcruxes, wasn' it?"

Harry smirked. "So you're finally saying his name?" he joked.

"I still don' like it, but you make me." said Hagrid.

"It's for the best." said Harry. He had gotten a lot of people to say Voldemort rather than You-Know-Who, but lots of people would still refuse to say his name. Even 20 years after his death. "And yes it was. But what's that have to do with anything now?"

"I'm gettin' there." said Hagrid a little impatiently. "Now this would be Danny's fourth year right?"

"Yeah." Harry replied, his confusion growing.

"Well, in your fourth year is when Voldemort came back, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Just something that I remembered. Anyway, while I was thinking about that, I started thinking about your nephew."

"Which one?" asked Harry. He had quite a few between all the Weasleys. "Jack, or, Kevin, or-"

"No, none of them." Hagrid interrupted. "I mean… well you know."

Harry's eyes widened as he realized who Hagrid was talking about. "Oh, you mean Drake?"

"Yeah him. He was Voldemort's apprentice for six years. And he taught him all these dark spells."

"Yeah, and?"

"Well, I was thinking, what if he taught him the Horcrux Creation Spell?"

It took a moment for this to sink in. When it did, Harry nearly dropped his cup. "I never thought about that. I see what you're saying though. This could be a problem. But what's this have to do with Danny?"

"Well it was yer fourth year that Voldemort came back, and now it's Danny's fourth year. You see what I'm saying?"

Harry nodded. "It's definitely something to consider. Thanks for bringing it to my attention."

"Just thought you outta know." said Hagrid. "Maybe you should see what Dumbledore thinks. Maybe he'll have some theories."

"Good idea." Harry agreed. "I'll go his portrait tomorrow after classes. Right now there's a beautiful witch waiting for me back in my room."

Hagrid chuckled. "Say hi to her for me."

"I will. Thanks again Hagrid. Good night."

"Night Harry."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Harry made his way back to his room. Could Drake have created a Horcrux? It was possible. How could he not have thought of this before? Yes, it was definitely something to think about. He decided he would talk it over with Dumbledore before he worried

Ginny or anyone else.

Just like he said he would, Harry made his way to McGonagall's office to have his talk with Dumbledore. He gave the password to the gargoyle and knocked on the door.

"Enter."

Harry entered the room that was once Albus Dumbledore's office but now belonged to Minerva McGonagall.

"Good evening, Harry." said McGonagall. "What brings you here?"

"Hagrid had some interesting things to say yesterday." said Harry. "I thought I should talk to you and Albus about it."

He looked up at Dumbledore's portrait. The former headmaster was sleeping peacefully.

"Very well." said McGonagall. "Just let me wake up Albus."

She tapped on Dumbledore's portrait, waking him up.

"Oh hellooooo, Minerva." yawned Dumbledore. "And Harry too. Good to see you. What brings you here?"

"I was just about to tell you." said Harry. "Hagrid and I had a little talk. He was worried about Drake."

"Drake?" said McGonagall in confusion. "Your nephew?"

Harry nodded.

"But he's dead. He died two years ago."

"I know, but do we know that for sure?" said Harry. "Hagrid was afraid that Voldemort may have taught him how to create Horcruxes."

Dumbledore seemed thoughtful and McGonagall seemed surprised.

"Very interesting theory." said Dumbledore. "However I think you can put your worries to rest. I can safely say that Drake did not create any Horcruxes."

"Why?" asked Harry. "Voldemort trained him for six years. That's plenty of time to learn the spell."

Dumbledore nodded. "Very true. But you are speaking of the spell as if it were any other spell."

"I know." said Harry. "First you have to kill in cold blood to rip your soul so you can put it in something. Drake did plenty of killing."

"Correct again. But there is something more to it." said Dumbledore. "Tell me, why do you think that being a Parseltongue is the symbol of being a dark wizard?"

"Er, I don't know. I never thought of it." said Harry. He felt a little ashamed. He was the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher and he didn't even know why Parseltongue was a sign of a dark wizard.

Dumbledore seemed to know what he was thinking. "Don't worry Harry. Many people don't know why. They just heard it was a bad thing from those that know the truth."

"What is the truth?"

"The truth, Harry, is that Parseltongue is  _not_  the sign of a dark wizard. It's just believed to be because only Parselmouthes can perform the Horcrux Creation Spell. The spell must be spoken in Parseltongue."

Harry thought about this. He tried to think back 20 years ago to when the Sorting Hat showed him the memory Voldemort performed the spell.

_Voldemort raised his wand to his forehead. His scarlet eyes rolled up into his head, leaving the blood red color, that was once the whites of his eyes, behind. He inhaled and exhaled deeply. He threw his head back, and held his wand up over his mouth._

" _Horcruxio!" hissed Voldemort._

_A second later, a small glowing orb floated out of Voldemort's open mouth. Wormtail gasped, but Voldemort did not seem to notice. Then what looked like an arm, made of red light, came out of the end of Voldemort's wand. The hand closed over the glowing orb. The arm began going back inside the wand. When it reached the wrist, the red hand turned black, the glowing orb vanishing inside. It was now as if a puff of black mist was hovering at the end of Voldemort's wand._

_Voldemort's eyes rolled back down. He fixed them on Harry._

" _ENTER!" cried Voldemort._

Harry opened his eyes. He had just relived that particular event. Voldemort performed the spell. Only it came out in a hissing sound rather than as a word. Even though it was spoken in Parseltongue Harry had understood it as if it was spoken in English.

"You see." said Dumbledore. "Even though Drake was evil enough to perform the spell, he didn't have the ability. So you see, Parseltongue is not a sign of darkness. It is only believed so because those that can speak it are capable of performing the darkest of spells."

"So you're saying I have the power to create a Horcrux?" asked Harry. "Not that I want to."

Dumbledore chuckled. "No Harry. You do not posses the power to do so. You speak the language that's required to perform the spell, nothing more. You forget the other required task that's needed to perform the spell. You must rip your soul. And the only way to do that is to kill in cold blood. You are not capable of such a thing, Harry. Nor are your children. And as far as I'm concerned, the three of you are the last Parseltongues alive. And on top of all this, Drake's body was found dead. If he had created a Horcrux the spell would not have killed him. Voldemort was tore from his body because it was destroyed. No, Drake is very dead. You have nothing to worry about."

Harry sighed in relief. Not only did this confirm that was indeed dead, it also showed that no further dark lords could create Horcruxes. "I'll bet Hagrid will be glad to hear that he has nothing to worry about. Thank you, Albus."

"Anytime Harry. Anytime."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: I know this chapter seems unimportant, but there is a very important part in this chapter that will be revealed later. As for Azkaban's oldest prisoner, he'll be making an appearance next chapter. Promise. And as for his identity, that won't be revealed for a few more chapters, sorry.)


	8. An Intruder on Halloween

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: I know things have been moving rather slowly, but now things are going to begin to get interesting.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 8: An Intruder on Halloween**

Harry had assured Hagrid that there was nothing to worry about and that Drake was indeed dead. Hagrid seemed a little disappointed saying that he thought he finally figured something out that not even Dumbledore thought of.

"Oh Hagrid, you're one of the most brilliant people I've ever met." laughed Harry.

"If I was so smart I would've bought that flesh eating slug repellent long ago." said Hagrid. "Do yeh have any idea how long I've been growing them pumpkins. And now they're ruined. Ruddy slugs."

"Don't worry, Hagrid. I'm sure Neville can help you with them." said Harry. "There are still a few weeks left before Halloween."

And Harry was quite right. With the help of Neville, Hagrid managed to save the remaining pumpkins. By the time Halloween came around, they were eight feet tall, freshly carved, and enchanted so they could talk.

All sorts of entertainment had been provided this year. The Muggle Studies teacher even decided to show a muggle scary movie on Halloween. It was to be entertainment as well as a learning experience for the students. Although, no one under their fifth year was allowed to watch it without a parent or guardian's permission.

Danny, Jamie, and Josh were given permission, but Hermione wouldn't let Kevin or Kelly watch, and Ginny absolutely refused to give Michelle permission.

"Please Mum, I won't get scared." begged Michelle.

"I said no, Michelle." said a very annoyed Ginny. Michelle had been asking for a while now. "The age for muggles to see this is 17 and you're only 11."

"Dad said I could watch it." said Michelle.

"No, I said to ask your mother if it was alright." Harry corrected her.

"And I don't say it's alright." said Ginny. "Why would you want to watch this anyway? The name itself sounds terrible. What was it again?"

"It's called  _'Hellraiser'_." said Michelle. "And it will be a good look at muggle entertainment. Think of it as a learning experience."

"Are you going to take Muggle Studies?" asked Ginny.

Michelle shook her head. "No."

"Then you don't need the learning experience. Remember what happened two years ago, when you saw part of the other muggle scary movie?"

"No."

"That's because we had to use a Memory Charm because you were so scared." said Harry.

Ginny nodded. "That's right. And you don't need that again."

"I was nine!" argued Michelle. "I'm a big girl now. And other girls in my dorm are going to see it."

"No Michelle. And that's final!"

Michelle stamped her foot and stormed off. Ginny turned to Harry. "I'm not sure letting Danny go was such a good idea."

Harry put an arm around her. "He'll be fine. He is a Gryffindor after all."

Michelle angrily burst into the common room. She nearly stepped on Venom.

" _Nice to see you too."_  hissed the snake.

" _Not now, Venom."_  hissed Michelle.  _"I'm not in the mood."_

Venom crawled up her leg and onto her shoulders.  _"What's wrong? Can I help?"_

Michelle shook her head.  _"No, I don't think so. Mum's not letting me go see the school movie tonight. It's not fair. Danny gets to go."_

" _He's three years older than you."_  Venom reminded her.

" _So what. I'm tired of everyone treating me like a child."_

" _My dear Michelle, it just means that she cares for you and doesn't want you to get scared."_

" _That's the whole point."_  hissed Michelle.  _"The movie is_ supposed _to scare you. What's Halloween without at least one good scare?"_

At that moment there was an interruption in the form of Kevin and Kelly.

"'Sup cuz." said Kevin.

"How come you two are so happy?" asked Michelle. "I thought you were upset your mum wouldn't let you see the movie?"

"We were." said Kevin.

"But we decided, we're don't need permission." said Kelly.

"Right. We're just going to sneak in." said Kevin slyly.

Michelle couldn't help but smile. "Your mum is not going to like that."

"Our mum doesn't like anything we do." said Kevin. "Neither do a lot of other people."

"But she only won't like it if she finds out." snickered Kelly. "You want us to bust you in too?"

Michelle laughed but shook her head. "No thanks guys. I'm gonna try and wear Mum down a bit more. Thanks though."

Kevin and Kelly shrugged. Kelly turned to Venom. "Hey, ask him if he'll be willing to eat Cheryl's cat."

"No!" exclaimed Michelle. "He only eats eggs. And even if he didn't, I wouldn't ask him. What's wrong with you?"

Michelle did indeed continue nagging about the movie. On Halloween, Ginny final gave in.

"But if you get scared, don't come crying to me." she said.

"I haven't cried in over a year." said Michelle.

She skipped away happily.

"She can be so stubborn sometimes." said Ginny. "I think she got that from you."

"Actually, I think she got that from both of us." snickered Harry.

Ginny playfully hit him. "I am not stubborn."

"Yeah right." said Ron. "You're as stubborn as Hermione."

"I beg your pardon?" exclaimed Hermione.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

For the most part, Halloween was rather enjoyable. The elves had made a variety of sweets, the ghosts put on quite a show, and they even had a vampire for entertainment. Harry, Ginny, Hermione, and Neville had absolutely no interest in seeing the Halloween movie, but Ron and Luna were curious. Around 11:00 the movie ended. Several students looked sickened while others looked terrified.

"Muggles actual enjoy watching that stuff!" exclaimed Ron.

"Some do." said Hermione.

Ron shook his head in disgust. "That's not right."

"I found it rather interesting." said Luna.

Ron's head snapped to her. "You can't be serious?"

"No really." said Luna. "The plot was disturbing, yes, but the effort put into making all that. How did the muggles do it without magic?"

Michelle came up to them looking a little disgusted.

"How was it?" asked Harry.

Michelle made a weird face. "It was… er, very freaky."

"Maybe next time you'll listen to me." said Ginny.

"Well I'm more worried about what Kevin and Kelly are going to do." said Michelle. "They said they were going to use the movie as a way to scare everyone."

Hermione narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean?"

Michelle put a hand over her mouth. "Oops. Um, nothing. Nothing."

Hermione wasn't fooled. "Did they sneak in?"

"I didn't say that."

"When I get my hands on those two." said Hermione. And she stormed off to find the twins.

Michelle looked anxiously at Ron. "You won't tell them I told, will you? The pranking will never end."

Ron smiled at her. "Don't worry. I won't say a word." He put a hand over his stomach. "I don't feel so good."

"Is it because of the movie, or because of all the garbage you ate?" asked Ginny.

Ron put his hand over his mouth. "The second one." he said. "Excuse me. Bathroom."

Harry and Ginny shook their heads.

"You know, I hope I didn't make a mistake in letting her see that movie." said Ginny.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

It seemed that it was a mistake when someone came knocking on their door at 3 in the morning. Harry got up to answer.

"Michelle." said Harry rubbing his eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Is it about the movie?" asked Ginny sleepily. "I told you, you shouldn't have-"

"No Mum, it's not that." said Michelle. "Well, it is, but it's not me that it's bothering. Some of the other girls are a little creeped out. They wanted me to get you because, one, you're my dad, and two, I was the only one who wasn't afraid to leave my bed."

Harry groaned. Well it was his duty as head of Gryffindor to see to his students. And of course they would want the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher if they were scared.

"Alright, I'm coming." said Harry.

He and Michelle walked back to the Gryffindor common room and entered the girl's dormitory. Harry had to perform a spell to prevent the stairs from keeping him out.

Several girls screamed when Harry and Michelle entered the room. One even fired a hex.

"Calm down girls." said Harry. "It's just me. Now, what's the problem?"

"Professor, we're afraid that something like what happened in the movie will happen to us."

Harry groaned again. "Now girls listen to me. It was not real. It's just something the muggles made up to scare people. And it seems to have worked. Nothing you saw can hurt you. All of the teachers won't let anything happen to you. You have nothing to worry about.

"I'll tell you what. How about for tonight I'll put up extra protection around your rooms. Will that make you feel better?"

The girls nodded.

"Ok then, good night." said Harry.

He left the room, but didn't bother putting up any spells. He knew that as long as the girls thought he did they wouldn't be as scared.

On his way out, he heard someone talking.

" _Lumos!"_  said Harry.

Light filled the common room. Kevin and Kelly were huddled in the corner, hiding something.

"What are you two doing?" he asked.

"Chillin'." said Kevin.

"What have you got there?"

"Nothing." said the twins in unison.

"Don't tell me nothing. You've got something.  _Accio!"_

A small gold box flew into Harry's hands. It was a half finished model of the puzzle box from the Halloween movie.

"What's this?"

"It's just a joke." said Kevin, smiling nervously.

"Yeah. When someone enters the room tomorrow it will automatically open." said Kelly. "It will scare anyone who watched the movie."

"Ten points from Gryffindor." said Harry. "You can't be doing things like that.

"Aw, come on, Uncle Harry." said Kelly. "Why not?"

"Because I'll tell your mother if you do."

"No!" gasped the twins.

"Then get to bed."

The twins didn't need telling twice. They took off to their dormitories. Harry looked down at the half finished model. He shook his head and laughed before vanishing the box.

He headed back to his room. Suddenly an inhuman cry echoed down the hall.

"What in the name of Merlin!" gasped Harry as the screaming stopped.

Harry ran in the direction the screams came from. He saw that the library was half open. Harry quietly entered the library. Was a student out of bed? Harry himself had snuck into the library after dark before. But he was a student then. He was a teacher now. And he couldn't just let students go sneaking around at night.

A light was coming from the restricted section. Harry made his way over to the light. Someone had their back turned to him. Several books were in a pile by them. One of them was the screaming book which was what had obviously brought Harry to investigate.

Harry didn't know who this person was or what they were doing here. It was a very old man in old clothes. Harry raised his wand to the man's back.

"Who are you?" Harry asked.

The man jumped. He looked at Harry before saying  _"Nox!"_  Harry barely saw the man's face before the light went out.

The man took off. Harry muttered  _"Lumos!"_  and went after him.

"Stop, or I'll attack!" Harry yelled.

There was a flash of green light. The spell just missed Harry. He was momentarily stunned. Was that the Killing Curse? It sure looked like it. If it was, Harry couldn't let the stranger escape.

" _Stupefy!"_  he cried.

The door slammed shut behind the man and the spell hit it. Harry heard the man magically lock the door.

" _Alohamora!"_  said Harry.

The door unlocked and Harry ran through it. Another jet of green light passed an in from his face.

Harry fired another stunner at the retreating figure. But he disappeared around the corner.

" _Stupefy!"_  cried Harry, turning the corner.

The man deflected the spell. He tapped a suit of armor with his wand. It sprang to life and swung its sword at Harry, nearly taking his head off. The suit of armor swung again. Harry created a shield very similar to the one Voldemort created when he was dueling Dumbledore at the ministry, only Harry's was gold and had a lion on it instead of a snake. The sword crashed into Harry's shield.

Harry pointed his wand at the suit of armor and cried  _"Finite Incantatem!"_

The suit of armor fell over and remained motionless, free from the stranger's control. Harry ran after the stranger, but he was way ahead of him.

Harry finally came to the Great Hall. The giant doors were open. The stranger was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Azkaban's oldest prisoner has revealed himself. Who they are is still unknown, but now they've been discovered. Things are going to start heating up.)


	9. It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: I'm drawing a blank here. I've got a major writer's block. I can't tell you how frustrating it is. Sigh. I hope you like it anyway.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 9: It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year**

No one had seen any sign of the intruder besides Harry. Hagrid claimed to have been woken up by the sound of someone disapparating but didn't see anyone, the portraits had been asleep, and none of the castle ghosts had seen anything. The castle, along with all of its secret passages and even Hogsmeade, were checked multiple times, but nothing was discovered.

The books the intruder had been looking through were on the history of dark arts and dark wizards. No books had appeared to be stolen. After several days the concern for the break in eased, but extra precautions were still made to make sure it did not happen again.

Harry was still worried. He didn't like the thought that someone that used the Killing Curse was loose somewhere, or the fact that they had somehow gotten into Hogwarts. He just thanked Merlin that no one was hurt… yet.

" _Eternus Inflammo!"_  cried Alexis in an annoyed voice.

Some sparks flew out of the end of her wand, which was pointed at a candle. Alexis growled in frustration and performed the spell again.

"You know, you've been trying that spell for 10 minutes now." said Jamie.

"Creating Eternal Fire isn't easy." Alexis complained.

"Take a break." Jack suggested.

Alexis shook her head. "I need a candle of Eternal Fire before Christmas break is over. How did you do it so easily?"

Jack shrugged. "I just did. But maybe you're over working yourself. Take a break. It's Christmas tomorrow."

A stubborn look came over Alexis's face and she continued performing the spell. Outside it was snowing, guaranteeing it to be another white Christmas. Everyone, or almost everyone, was at the Potter Manor, since it was the biggest house. Harry and Ginny, Ron and Hermione, Fred and Angelina, George and Alicia, Bill and Fleur, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, along with all of their kids were staying over for holiday. Fred and George each had three kids. Fred's two daughters and son were Erika, Jenny, and Ivy and George's two sons and daughter were Tony, Gary, and Tina. Fred and George had planned on making their kids the greatest pranksters ever, but Angelina and Alicia had other plans. That didn't mean that their kids didn't pick up a few things from their fathers anyway.

Charlie and his family were in Romania and unable to come over for holiday, much to the disappointment to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. The Longbottoms too were away. Choosing to spend Christmas break taking a trip to a warmer climate.

"It's really hard to concentrate with those two bickering!" growled Alexis, referring to Kevin and Kelly who could be heard arguing in the other room. "What are they going on about this time?"

"Oh, I don't know." said Jack. "Something about one of them thinking that the  _'Lord of the Rings'_  trilogy is based on a true story."

"They're not the only ones fighting." said Jamie, smirking.

At that moment, Michelle came running through the room laughing.

"Slow him down." she cried to Jamie as she ran by her cousins.

Danny came running into the room after her, still wearing his pajamas. Jamie used the Trip Jinx and Danny was laying face down on the floor.

"Hey!" he cried in frustration.

"Sorry Danny." smirked Jamie. "But us girls got to stick together."

Ginny came into the room to see what all the commotion was. "What's going on in here? Danny leave your sister alone."

"But Mum, she keeps taking my sox and boxers so I have nothing to wear." said Danny. "This time she threw them in the snow."

Jamie, Jack, and Alexis laughed.

"I remember doing that to you, Jack." laughed Jamie.

Jack glared at her. "Yeah, and I didn't like it that much."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Azkaban's oldest prisoner stood among his army of Inferi. He mentally kicked himself for being so stupid on Halloween. He was smarter than that. Yet he still managed to get caught. He was being careless. And from the looks of it, Harry Potter, of all people, was the one to find him. What was he doing up so late anyway?

The man rested against a tree. He knew he was safe for now. Potter hadn't identified him. He barely got a glimpse. And as far as anyone knew, he was supposed to be dead. Not that anyone cared. His death had just been in a small section of the Daily Prophet, merely mentioning that he was found dead in his cell. Little did they know, that, that wasn't his body. It was Dolores Umbridge's under the effects of the Polyjuice Potion. It was a very good plan. Who would have thought that Barty Crouch would have come up with such an ingenious plan to get his son out of Azkaban.

Drake had filled the man in on lots of things that had happened over the years he was in Azkaban. He learned a lot about the Dark Lord. How he had returned to power, about his Horcruxes, and how Potter managed to defeat him.

" _Such a waste."_  the man thought. Voldemort was such a powerful wizard. Intelligent, fearless, powerful, a true Dark Lord. How could Drake have thought that he could compete with Lord Voldemort?

It didn't matter now. Both Drake and Voldemort were dead. All their supporters were either dead or in Azkaban. It was only him now. But he wasn't allies with either Drake or Voldemort. He was his own person. The only problem was the Unbreakable Vow. Yes, he would have to fulfill it, or die. But first he needed to find his prize. He had managed to get into Hogwarts, thanks to another one of Voldemort's past plans, but he hadn't found anything yet. And now he had to be more careful. He got lucky the first time he had been caught, but that may not happen again.

"There can be no more mistakes." the man said to himself. "I'll find my prize. Then the world will fall before me."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"Good haul this year." said Kevin as he and the other boys climbed into bed.

"I still can't believe you and Kelly gave everyone coal." said Tony.

Kevin burst out laughing. "Sorry cuz, couldn't resist. But you know what they say. It's the thought that counts."

"I would have  _thought_  that you and Kelly would have learned to behave yourselves." said Jack.

"Behave?" said Kevin with a confused look. "What is this behave? Tell me, dear brother, what does it mean?"

"It means, go to sleep before I call Mum." said Jack.

Kevin glared at his brother. "Spoil sport."

"I heard that!"

Danny emptied all his clothes drawers. He was seriously getting frustrated.

"Damn it! Have any of you guys seen my pajamas?" he asked. "Every pare is missing. My slippers too."

"Look outside." muttered Kevin sleepily.

Danny gave Kevin a confused look before going to the window. His clothes were laying in the snow.

"What the?" he said. Then understanding dawned on him. "MICHELLE!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Yeah, not much happened this time. Sorry. I promise that the next chapter will be more interesting.)


	10. Firenze's Warning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Ok, the suspense has come to an end. If you haven't found the hints in the past chapters, they will be revealed at the end of this one.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 10: Firenze's Warning**

February became March, and March became April. It was now time for another big day. No not April Fool's Day, which was Kevin and Kelly's favorite holiday, but another big day. At least for some people. The two most important of them being Harry and Ginny.

Ginny slowly woke up. She had a good night sleep and was looking forward to today. The smell of a flower garden filled the room and Ginny slowly opened her eyes. The room was filled with flowers of all kinds. Harry was standing at the end of the bed watching her.

"Happy anniversary, my love." said Harry.

"Happy anniversary." replied Ginny kissing him. She looked around the room and smiled. "You always have to do something romantic like this, don't you?"

Harry smirked. "Nothing is too good for you, sunshine. Now it's time for your present.  _Accio present!"_

A small box wrapped in white paper flew into his hand. He handed it to Ginny, who smiled and took it.

"You spoil me, you know that." she said.

"I like to spoil you." said Harry. "Go ahead, open it."

Ginny unwrapped the gift. She opened the box and gasped. Inside was a gold necklace. It had a gold heart shaped locket hanging on it. In the middle of the locket was a heart shaped ruby.

"Oh Harry! It's beautiful!" she said.

"Open it."

Ginny did. Music came from the inside. There was also a picture of Harry and Ginny at their wedding. Ginny looked up at Harry.

"Is that…"

"Our wedding song." said Harry. "Yes. And there's us just after we were married. Do you like it?"

"I love it!" Ginny cried. She threw her arms around him. "Thank you."

"Your welcome." said Harry. "I also got a muggle movie for us to watch tonight. It's called  _'Phantom of the Opera'_. It should be good."

Ginny raised her eyebrows. Phantoms weren't friendly creatures. "Phantom?"

"It's not like our phantoms." explained Harry. "It's what muggles believe phantoms are. Don't worry, it's a romance movie."

Ginny smiled. "Sounds good to me. And now it's your turn. I got you  _two_  gifts."

Harry smirked. "You always have to do better than me, don't you?"

Ginny laughed. "Yup. Just give me a second to find… ah, here it is."

She handed him what looked like a wrapped bottle of wine. Harry opened it and his mouth fell open. It was a clear wine bottle, but instead of wine, it was filled with a gold liquid.

"Is this Felix Felicis?" he asked in amazement.

"You bet." replied Ginny. "Made it myself. I think you can put it to good use. Just keep each helping about a week apart. Too much of a good thing can be bad."

Harry kissed her. "Nothing coming from you can be bad."

"Well you won't need any lucky potion to get lucky tonight."

Harry blushed and Ginny laughed.

"If you like that, you're going to love this. It took me a while to get all the pieces, most came from Remus, but it's finally finished."

She handed him a smaller bottle. Harry unwrapped it. Inside was a silver liquid. It was obviously someone's memories.

"Whose memory is it?" Harry asked.

"Several people's." said Ginny. "But the memory is of your parents' wedding."

Harry's mouth fell open again. He looked at the bottle.

"My… my parents'…"

Ginny nodded. "We can watch that tonight too."

"Ginny… I…"

"Your welcome." said Ginny. She yawned. "What time is it?"

"A little after ten." said Harry.

Ginny's eyes widened. "After ten!" We're late! Very late!"

"Gin, calm downed." Harry laughed. "I got us the day off. It's just going to be you and me today. I have the whole day planned out. Just the two of us."

Ginny relaxed. "You scared me there for a minute."

Harry chuckled. "Sorry love. Didn't mean to."

"It's ok. Who did you get to fill in for us?"

"Well Tonks came in to fill in for your class, and for me, I got-"

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"Good morning class." said Remus Lupin. "Professor Potter will not be in today. So I will be your teacher for the time."

"Bring out the silver!" shouted Cheryl. "It's the werewolf!"

Several Slytherins laughed. Danny, Jamie, and Josh glared at her.

"Remind me to hex her after class." Danny growled.

"Only if I get to hex her first." said Jamie, just as mad.

Lupin, however, smiled. "Not to worry, Miss Malfoy. I am quite tame. And Full Moon is not for a while. You have nothing to worry about. It's strange though, that you bring up my 'furry little problem', because werewolves is something we're going to be talking about today. But before them we're going to talk about something else. First we're going to discuss vampires, then we'll move onto werewolves. So, who can tell me what a vampire is and the scientific name for it?"

Jamie raised her hand.

"Yes Miss Weasley?"

"The scientific name is  _Hominus Nocturna."_  said Jamie. "They're people infected by the Noseferatu Curse. A female vampire is known as a vampiress. Vampires are similar to humans, but are a different species altogether. They feed off the blood of humans. Each vampire releases a scent to attract humans of the opposite gender. Every vampire gains an Animagus form of a bat, and the ability to turn into it. Their senses are much stronger than humans. They have no reflection. And they also live twice as long as wizards. If they bite a victim and their prey survives, they become a vampire as well."

"Very good, Miss Weasley." said Lupin. "Take ten points for Gryffindor. There are several ways to chase vampires away. We all know that muggles believe vampires to be fictional. But such things like holy water and crosses are useless, but who can tell me what will stop a vampire. Mr. Little."

He pointed to a Ravenclaw student. "Well, vampires are allergic to garlic. They also have a resistance to the sun. Actually any ultraviolet rays. They burn vampires like fire."

"Excellent. Ten points to Ravenclaw." said Lupin. "There is a spell to repel a vampire though. But we'll get to that in a minute. Now we will talk about werewolves. Answer the same questions as I asked for a vampire. Yes, Mr. Longbottom."

"The scientific name for a werewolf is  _Lycanthrope."_  Josh explained. "People infected with the Lupine Curse become a rabid half wolf, half human creature during Full Moon. They transfer the curse by biting their victims. During the time of Full Moon, they have no memory of who they once were. They have an allergic reaction to, as Cheryl pointed out, silver and Monk's Wood, which is a type of plant. Other than changing once a month, a werewolf is no different than a normal person."

"Very good. Ten more points to Gryffindor." said Lupin. "Now there is a spell to repel a werewolf that is similar to the one to repel a vampire. It's the Repel Charm. It will prevent certain things from approaching you. The incantation to repel a werewolf is  _Fugo Lupus._  Everyone say it with me."

" _Fugo Lupus!"_

"Very good. The incantation to repel a vampire is  _Fugo Lamia."_

" _Fugo Lamia!"_

"Excellent. Now, we don't have a vampire to try the spell on. Nor do we have a werewolf… Well, at least not one in its wolf form. But no matter. We will use the Repel Charm on one of the house ghosts. Now, our volunteer."

Nearly Headless Nick floated in the room.

"Sir Nicholas here will be what we are repelling." explained Lupin. "The incantation to repel a ghost is  _"Fugo Lemures!"_

" _Fugo Lemures!"_

"Very nice. Now I shall demonstrate the spell." said Lupin. He cleared his throat.  _"Fugo Lemures!"_

A shield of light blue light surrounded Lupin.

"Now Sir Nicholas, if you'll be so kind as to show the power of the Repel Charm."

Nick floated up to the shield. Once he touched it, he was bounced back.

"As you can see, Sir Nicholas is quite unable to penetrate the shield. So if all of you will form a line-"

There was a knock at the door. Lupin said to whoever it was to come in. It was the Divination teacher, the centaur Firenze.

"Good day, Remus." said Firenze. "Sorry to interrupt, but I need to speak with Mr. Potter."

"Of course." said Lupin. "Mr. Potter, you may go."

Danny went with Firenze, wondering what was going on.

"Is there a problem, Professor?" Danny asked.

"I'm afraid so." said Firenze. "It concerns your father. The heavens have revealed a terrible event involving him. I must speak to him at once. Do you know where he is?"

Danny shook his head. "No, it's his and Mum's anniversary. They left for the day."

"Well when you see him, tell him it is urgent that I speak with him."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Harry and Ginny sat in their room snuggling together on the couch. It had been a great day. After spending the whole day doing whatever they want, they came back and watched Harry's parent's wedding and were now just finishing  _'Phantom of the Opera'._

"I feel bad for the phantom." said Ginny. "But that was a lovely movie. I liked the music."

"Me too." said Harry. "I don't normally like opera music though. I can't understand a thing they're saying."

Ginny giggled. "If you mean that high pitch screaming singing, I don't like that either. It reminds me of the at Lady trying to sing."

The two of them just sat there snuggling.

"I had a great time today, Harry. Thanks."

"I had a great time too." said Harry. "Everyday I spend with you is wonderful. It's like I fall in love with you more and more everyday."

Ginny snuggled closer. "I know what you mean. Now stop talking and kiss me."

Harry didn't need telling twice. The two of them kissed passionately. Ginny whispered something in Harry's ear. He smiled and waved his wand. Locking and Silencing Charms were placed around the room. The lights went out and all the candles lit. Soothing music filled the room.

"Thank Merlin for Silencing Charms." said Ginny, as she began kissing her husband again.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Danny knocked on his parents' door again and still received no answer. He knew his parents had come back. He had seen them. So why weren't they answering him?

Danny turned and walked away. He suddenly decided he didn't want to know what was happening in his parents' room. Whatever Firenze needed to speak to his father about could wait until morning. Right?

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Harry made his way to Firenze's room. He wondered what the problem was. Whatever it was, he was about to find out.

"Harry, I'm glad you came." said Firenze. "I wished to speak to you yesterday, but it seems that was out of the question."

Harry blushed.

"Come Harry. Look here."

The starry sky was floating around the classroom. Firenze pointed to one specific area.

"Do you know what the heavens are telling me?" he asked.

Harry didn't have a clue. "Er, no. Divination was never really one of my special skills."

Firenze sighed. "Harry, it is very confusing, even for me to read. But according to my readings, one not among the dead shall rise. He shall bring with him the true dead. And bring death to life. Only the bringer of light stands in his way. The Lord of the Dead must take the life to the bringer of light or else he shall join the dead. Only with love may the Chosen One concur the Lord of the Dead. This is the best I can read."

"What does it mean?" asked Harry. He didn't understand a word of this.

"It means that someone who is believed to be dead is not. He raises the dead to rule over them. Only you, the bringer of light, can stop him with the power of love."

"How do you know I'm the bringer of light?"

"Because you brought light to a world filled with darkness. I am talking, of course, about the time you defeated the Dark Lord once and for all. You must be careful Harry. For I fear that great danger lies ahead for you."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"So there is someone that everyone thinks is dead that's after you?" asked Ginny.

Harry nodded. "Looks like it. It seems I can never get a break with these things. And why is it always me? First Voldemort, then Drake, now this. All these Dark Lords are targeting me."

"Harry, Voldemort is the one that started all this." said Ginny. "Drake was one of his followers, so he went after you too. And if this Lord of the Dead is after you too, he's probably one of Voldemort's supporters thought to be dead. So once they're dealt with, then it's finally over. You'll be free."

Harry sighed. "You're right. It's just that… every time something like this happens I worry about you and the kids. I don't want you, or anyone else to get hurt."

"Harry, nothing is going to happen to us." Ginny insisted. "You have to stop thinking like that. You are  _the_  most powerful wizard in the world. And whatever the heavens read, I know you'll pull through. And I'm going to help you."

Harry smiled and kissed her. "Thanks Gin."

There came a knock at the door. Harry waved his hand and the door opened.

"Dad." said Danny, poking his head in the room. "Something is wrong with Venom."

He held the snake out to his father. Harry examined him.

" _What's wrong, Venom?"_  he hissed.

" _Stomachache."_  hissed Venom.  _"I wonder if I ate a bad egg."_

Harry chuckled.  _"Come on, I'll take you to Hagrid. He's the animal expert."_

Harry picked Venom up and went down to see Hagrid. He knocked on the door and called out to him.

"Hagrid! You there? I need to talk to you!"

He heard Hagrid drop something and swear angrily. Hagrid opened the door. He looked really irritated.

"Harry, now's not a very good time." said Hagrid.

"This will just take a minute." said Harry. "Venom doesn't feel so well. Do you have anything to settle his stomach?"

Hagrid growled in annoyance. "Alright come in. But hurry up. I'm really busy."

Hagrid began rummaging through a cabinet. He pulled out some pills and tossed them to Harry.

"Here, now get out!"

Harry stared at Hagrid. "Are you alright? You're acting kind of funny."

"I'm fine!" snapped Hagrid. "I need something to drink."

He rushed over to his wine cabinet and pulled out a wine bottle. He was about to open it when he began shaking and groaning.

"Hagrid!" cried Harry. Something was definitely wrong. Hagrid was in pain. "What's wrong with-"

He stopped talking as something began happening to Hagrid. His skin began crawling and his bones started shifting. Harry had seen these effects before. Yet he couldn't believe what he was seeing. He suddenly had several flashbacks from the past few months. Hagrid had been giving Madam Maxime English lessons for a long time, but his accent never changed before. The time Harry had been in Hagrid's hut and it smelled like cabbage, Hagrid had used his wand to remove the smell. Hagrid didn't use a wand, he used his pink umbrella. And that smell of cabbage. Perhaps it wasn't cabbage. Perhaps it was…

Harry looked at the wine bottle Hagrid had been attempting to drink from. It was the same bottle Hagrid had drunk out of when he had been here to talk about Drake. Harry waved his wand. The wine bottle fell off the table and shattered. A sick yellow goo was inside. Polyjuice Potion!

Harry looked back at Hagrid, who was no longer Hagrid. He recognized the intruder from Halloween. He had been here all along.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Ok, I lied, I am going to keep you in suspense about who Azkaban's oldest prisoner is a little bit longer. But now you know the truth. Who saw the clues? Let me know what you thought. Oh, and please don't be mad at me for the cliffhanger. If it helps, you'll find out who Azkaban's oldest prisoner is next chapter. I promise.)


	11. The Prisoner's Secret

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Finally, it's the chapter you've all been waiting for. The one that reveals who Azkaban's oldest prisoner is.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 11: The Prisoner's Secret**

Harry drew his wand and pointed it at the man.

"Who are you?" he demanded. "Where's Hagrid?"

The man growled. Then to Harry's surprise, he slammed into the wall such force, that he broke right through it. Harry was momentarily stunned by the man's strength, especially for being so old, but went through after him. The man was heading for the area outside the Anti-apparation Zone.

" _Stupefy!"_  Harry cried.

" _Protego!"_

The man blocked the spell and stopped running. He turned to face Harry.

"You didn't answer my questions." Harry growled. "Who are you, and where is Hagrid?"

The man smirked. "I guess it doesn't matter anymore. Looks like the jig is up. I'm afraid I can't let you leave knowing about me, Potter."

"You're the one that's not leaving." snapped Harry. "Now who are you?"

"You don't recognize me?" the man laughed. "Has it really been that long? Then again, I have changed greatly over the years, and my era of darkness was before your time.

"You ask who I am, Potter? I am the Dark Lord that came before Lord Voldemort. I am the oldest wizard alive. I am the Lord of the Dead. I am the heir of the greatest and darkest wizards to ever live. I am Grindelwald!"

Harry nearly dropped his wand. Grindelwald? The dark wizard that Dumbledore defeated back in 1945? He should be dead. Harry knew that Dumbledore didn't  _kill_  Grindelwald back then, but Grindelwald's death had been in the Daily Prophet two years ago. True, it was just a small article, but it still told of his death.

"What?" Harry gasped. "But how? You're supposed to be dead."

Grindelwald laughed. "That was the plan. Everyone was  _supposed_  to think I was dead. I escaped from Azkaban and put someone in my place."

"And how did you escape, if you don't mind me asking?"

"It was quite easy." said Grindelwald grinning. "But I didn't do it on my own. I couldn't have. But thanks to the help from a certain dark wizard, I was able to. I believe you know him. He was your nephew."

Harry scowled. "Drake! Drake got you out?"

"Yes!" Grindelwald hissed. "The so called New Dark Lord. Ha! What a laugh. I knew right away he wasn't going to make it. Although, I must give him credit on getting me out. Even if it wasn't his plan. You see, he actually used the same plan Barty Crouch used to get his son out. A little Polyjuice Potion, a person to switch places with and then kill once the switch was made so everyone thought I was dead, then I walked out disguised as my replacement. I believe her name was Dolores Umbridge."

Harry glared at Grindelwald. So Umbridge was dead, was she? Harry felt the smallest bit of sympathy for the old woman. She was a wicked person, but Harry didn't think she deserved death.

"And why would Drake want to break you out?" asked Harry. He made a mental note to make sure Azkaban had some changes made so nothing like this would happen again.

Grindelwald shrugged. "He said he wanted my help. Said he had a mission for me to do. He made me make the Unbreakable Vow to complete the mission."

"Oh. And what's your mission?"

Grindelwald stopped smiling. His face took on a serious expression. "To kill you!  _Avada Kedavra!"_

Harry dodged out of the way, the spell just missing him. He knew Grindelwald was a terrible dark wizard, but Harry needed to keep him talking. He had to find out where the real Hagrid was and to find out what Grindelwald was up to for the past two years.

"So why have you waited all this time to kill me?" he asked. "It's been years since your so called death was reported. Why wait so long?"

Grindelwald didn't attack again. He seemed to be enjoying the fact that he could finally talk about his secret life. "I had my own mission to do first. I don't have anything against you, Potter, so I could hold off on killing you. It didn't matter  _when_  I killed, just that I  _did_  kill you. I had something more important to do first. And I hoped to be able to find some clues here at Hogwarts. But how to get in was the question. Well, while I was out of Azkaban, I realized I had missed a great deal of events that took place in the world. True, I still heard somewhat of what was going on, but I needed to know more. I was very curious about Lord Voldemort. I learned a lot about him. Including his plan to sneak a Death Eater into Hogwarts disguised as ex-auror Alaster Moody. Quite a clever plan. I figured that if it worked once, it could work again. I just needed to find someone to disguise myself as.

"The answer came to me while I was in Knockturn Alley. I met the half-breed giant Hagrid, who was buying flesh eating slug repellent. I took him captive. He's up in a cave in Hogsmeade. I became him. I took his place here at Hogwarts. It was very annoying, having to deal with all these kids. And that stupid accent of the brainless oaf was enough to drive me crazy. But I was patient. I knew that in order to get my prize I would just have to deal with it."

"And what is your prize?" Harry asked.

Grindelwald laughed. "Do you think I'm going to tell you that. No, I'm not a fool. I will not tell anyone. But besides my prize, I also had to learn about you. I did have to kill you after all. And I know how powerful you are. I was planning to find everything I could about you. And now I have learned all I needed to. I was hoping to find my prize before I faced you. But not everything goes as planned."

He fired another Killing Curse at Harry. It came close. Too close.

" _Expelliarmus!"_

" _Protego! Diffindo! Reducto! Crucio! Avada Kedavra!"_

Harry dodged the Unforgivable Curses and blocked the rest. He  _could_  bloke Crucio and Avada Kedavra, but they were much harder.

" _Wingardium Leviosa!"_  Harry cried,

The pieces of wood from Hagrid's hut flew at Grindelwald.

" _Reducto! Reducto! Reducto!"_  Grindelwald blew the pieces of wood apart.  _"Avada Kedavra!"_

Harry dodged the attack. "You seem rather fond of the Killing Curse." said Harry.

Grindelwald sneered. "It's is the most destructive spell. It's used to kill people, and I want to kill you.  _Avada Kedavra!"_

Grindelwald continued to use the Killing Curse, and Harry continued to dodge, occasionally firing a stunner or a disarming spell. One spell nearly hit Harry, just grazing his robes and burning a hole in them. Harry fell over and Gridelwald stood over him with a look of triumph on his face.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_

It was now or never, Harry decided. It had been a long time since he last blocked the unblockable Killing Curse. Time to see if he could do it again.

" _Protego!"_  he cried.

The curse was blocked. Looked like Harry hadn't lost his touch. Grindelwald was staring at Harry with an amazed look on his face.

"So it's true." Grindelwald whispered. "I heard you could block the Killing Curse, but I didn't really believe it."

Harry smirked at him. "Yes it's true. It is also true that I was the only person to survive it as well."

Now Grindelwald was smiling. "Yes, I heard of that too. Your mother died to protect you. Very ancient magic, that is. Voldemort was a fool to overlook it. But tell me, how did you live with yourself knowing you were the reason for the deaths of your parents."

The smile faded from Harry's face. "Don't you dare say that! It was not my fault!"

Grindelwald laughed again. "Yes it was. It was all your fault. You know it's true. Feel the pain.  _Dolor Laboro!"_

Harry felt all the grief and hurt he had felt from the deaths of his friends and families. But Harry knew he could overcome this. Drake had used the same spell on him during their duel. Ginny was able to save him from his grief. He was now able to be at peace with himself. It was  _not_  his fault. He knew it. And no curse was going to make him feel that pain again. His loved ones had freed him from that.

"That's not going to work anymore!" Harry shouted. The curse was broken. Harry got to his feet. "I have been over my grief for a long time! I no longer feel guilty, because I have  _nothing_  to feel guilty for! But what about you, Grindelwald? Do you have anything to feel guilty for?  _Dolor Laboro!"_

Grindelwald was hit with the same curse he had just used on Harry. But he didn't react. He showed no signs of grief. He felt no remorse at all for what he had done.

" _Suffoco!"_  he cried.

Harry suddenly couldn't breath. It was like he was choking, but nothing was blocking his windpipe. No air was getting into his lungs. Harry's wand dropped from his hands as he grabbed at his throat.

"No Potter, I do not feel guilty for anything." said Grindelwald in a voice just above a whisper. "I have no feelings for others. I have killed countless times in my past, and I have not felt the smallest ounce of guilt. I do not feel sorry for others. I do not care for others. They are nothing to me. This world is nothing to me. And I shall destroy it."

Harry tried to breath but still couldn't. His face was starting to turn blue. "You're… crazy…" he managed to get out.

Grindelwald smiled. "Many people believe so. And maybe I am. But know this, Harry Potter, crazy as I may be, I am eternal. And I will tear this world apart. Even if it takes an eternity!"

" _Stupefy!"_  cried several voices.

Harry felt the curse lift off him as Grindelwald blocked the stunners. He sucked down the cool air and looked to see who had arrived. It was Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Luna.

" _Stupefy!"_

" _Stupefy!"_

" _Expelliarmus!"_

" _Stupefy!"_

" _Expelliarmus!"_

Grindelwald retreated. He didn't dare take on six challengers at one. At least not now anyway. He knew when it was time to fight, and when it was time to leave. And now it was time to leave.

"Stun him." Harry wheezed, as Grindelwald ran towards the apparation point. Five stunners went after him. He vanished just before they hit. Grindelwald was gone.

"Harry!" cried Ginny. She ran to him and threw her arms around him. "Oh Harry, are you alright? I was so worried."

"I'm fine." said Harry, still trying to catch his breath. "How did you know I was in trouble?"

"Venom came up to the castle." said Neville. "He told Danny you needed help and he told us."

"Who was that?" asked Hermione.

Harry got to his feet, using Ginny as support. "No time to talk now." he said. "We have to see Albus."

"But Harry." said Ron. "Don't you think-"

"No time." said Harry, heading for the castle. "Have to go now, before it's too late."

He ran up to the castle with the others following him completely bewildered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Ha, ha, bet you never guessed that Azkaban's oldest prisoner was Grindelwald. I always wondered whether or not he would come up somewhere in the books or something. The plot for this story first came to me when I realized that it never said that Dumbledore killed Grindelwald, only defeated him. I'll have more explanations in the next chapter.)
> 
> Suffoco - to strangle, choke, suffocate.
> 
> Dolor Laboro - to be filled with grief.


	12. The Lord of the Dead

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Before I get started, I would like to remind everyone of who Grindelwald is in case anyone has forgotten. In the first book, when Harry gets his Dumbledore card, it states that Dumbledore defeated the dark wizard Grindelwald. That's where he comes from. But then I started thinking, what if he's alive and just in Azkaban or something. Thus inspiring me to write this story.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 12: The Lord of the Dead**

Harry ran up to McGonagall's office. Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Luna following closely behind. Harry knew that they wanted to know what was going on, but there was no time to explain. Grindelwald was on the loose. He needed to tell Dumbledore, or Dumbledore's portrait anyway.

Harry gave the password to the stone gargoyle. He ran up the stairs and knocked rapidly on the door.

"Come in." said McGonagall, sounding annoyed that someone was hammering on the door.

Harry burst into the room with the others following.

"Harry!" exclaimed McGonagall. "What's the meaning of this?"

"Minerva, I need to speak to Albus immediately!" cried Harry.

He looked ay Dumbledore's portrait.

"Very well, Harry." said Dumbledore calmly. "What's the big emergency?"

"I just met Grindelwald!" Harry cried. "He's been using Polyjuice Potion to disguise himself as Hagrid all year!"

There were shocked gasps from everyone. Dumbledore's mouth was hanging open. He was completely at a loss for words.

"But he's dead." said Hermione, breaking the silence. "You know that, don't you Albus? It was in the Daily Prophet a couple years ago."

Dumbledore closed his mouth and shook his head. "I am quite unable to hold the Daily Prophet, let alone read it. I believed Grindelwald to be still locked away in Azkaban."

"Drake busted him out." said Harry quickly. "He did the same thing Barty Crouch did to get his son out. He used Umbridge as a replacement, making everyone think he was dead. He killed her in his cell disguised as Grindelwald under the effects of Polyjuice Potion."

"I told Cornelius Fudge to fix that kind of error when it happened the first time." said Dumbledore, sounding annoyed. "Please continue."

"Drake made him make the Unbreakable Vow to kill me." Harry said. "Grindelwald agreed. But first he said he needed to find his prize, or something. He kidnapped Hagrid and used Polyjuice Potion to get into Hogwarts disguised as him."

"So he's worried." said Dumbledore thoughtfully. "He wouldn't take any risks thinking it wasn't safe."

"Do you know what he's talking about?" Harry asked.

"Indeed I do." said Dumbledore. "I'm sure he's searching for his Horcrux."

Harry's mouth dropped open. He looked at the others. They too had their mouths open in shock.

"You're kidding." moaned Harry. "More Horcruxes. How many did he create?"

"Just one, Harry." said Dumbledore. "I told you when we were discussing Voldemort that the most Horcruxes anyone ever created was one."

"And do you know what it is?"

"Of course." Dumbledore replied. "It was I who took it from him. At the risk of having it destroyed Grindelwald surrendered to me. Only if I would not destroy his Horcrux."

"So what is it?" said Harry, now sounding impatient.

"Harry, before you get involved with Grindelwald you must learn all you can about him if you are to go after him." Dumbledore explained. "It is very important for you to listen to me. Now, I know that you have had trouble staying awake in your History of Magic class when you were a student here, but I assume you know who Merlin's greatest enemy was."

"Of course." said Harry. "Morgan Le Fay."

"Yes, it was." said Dumbledore. "What I'm sure you don't know is that Le Fay is Grindelwald's great ancestor."

The others were quiet.

"No way!" said Ron.

"Grindelwald is Le Fay's descendant?" gasped Hermione.

"Yes, Hermione." replied Dumbledore. "A direct descendant of one of the most dreaded Dark Lords ever to exist. Anyway, Grindelwald had a pendant that was passed down from generation to generation. The pendant of Le Fay. It is rumored to hold special powers. Whether it does or not, I do not know. Either way, Grindelwald decided to turn the pendant into a Horcrux. He was the second person in history to create a Horcrux. Only three people in history have created those terrible devices. Grindelwald, Voldemort, and the inventor of Horcruxes."

"And who was the inventor?" asked Ginny.

"I think I know." said Harry quietly.

Dumbledore nodded. "Salazar Slytherin. Yes, he was the first. The creator. He was obviously defeated. When Godric Gryffindor found out about Salazar's attempt to 'remove' the muggleborns from the school, he was forced to kill his cousin. He found his Horcrux and destroyed it. Then he killed Salazar himself. This is, of course, what started the Gryffindor and Slytherin rivalry that still continues to this day. And even now it seems that Salazar's terrible invention has-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold up!" Harry cried. "You said only Parselmouthes could create Horcruxes."

Dumbledore nodded. "Indeed I did."

"Then how could Grindelwald have created a Horcrux?" said Harry, beginning to pass the room. "I mean, he wasn't a Parselmouth. Was he?"

There was no reply. Harry stopped pacing. He looked up at Dumbledore and stared right into his eyes.

"Was he, Albus?"

Dumbledore sighed. "Yes, Harry. He was."

"I thought that Slytherin and his direct descendants and ancestors were the only Parselmouthes." said Hermione.

"They were."

"Then how could Grindelwald…"

Realization dawned on Hermione. She stared at the others. They seemed confused at first, but then they seemed to catch on. Harry looked back up at Dumbledore, who nodded.

"NO!"

"Yes Harry." said Dumbledore. "Grindelwald is a descendant of Slytherin as well as Le Fay. I assume you do not know what Grindelwald's last name was. Well it's Gaunt. Grindelwald Gaunt. His mother was a descendant of Le Fay, while his father was a descendant of Slytherin. Very ironic that even though Merlin and Le Fay were the greatest of enemies, their descendants managed to join together. Perhaps it is this reason that Grindelwald decided to choose the path that he did. He believed he was destined for greatness. Why he sees what he's done was greatness, I never will know. It is in fact his fault that the Guant family became so poor. Being the descendants of Slytherin certainly gave them a large amount of power and wealth. But Grindelwald lost all that when he was captured. And it's a good thing he was caught before he became too strong. Harry, do you know why Grindelwald is known as the Lord of the Dead?"

Harry shook his head and Hermione made an annoyed noise, indicating that she, of course, knew.

"Grindelwald in some ways is not as bad as Voldemort. In other ways he was much worse."

"How could he be worse?" asked Neville.

"His goals." said Dumbledore simply. "Voldemort was a cruel demented individual. He enjoyed hurting people and causing them pain. He went after his enemy's loved ones and used them to get to others. He wanted to enslave the world and destroy all muggleborns.

"Grindelwald had a different approach. He wasn't the kind of person to cause pain and suffering to others. He wasn't necessarily against muggleborns. But he was a cold-blooded murderer. He killed everyone and everything without hesitation. He would then reanimate the bodies and create Inferi. This was his goal. To destroy all life and control all the dead that he would rule over. It was a terrible time. People dying left and right, and Inferi appearing more and more. They even got into the muggle world. This is of course where muggles got the ideas of zombies, although I have no idea why they thought that Inferi would eat the flesh of the living. Quite disturbing, if you ask me."

"He is crazy!" exclaimed Ginny.

"It would seem so." said Dumbledore. "Ruling a world of the dead as the only living being. Quite dreadful."

"Wait a minute!" Harry cried. "When I was talking to you several months ago about Hagrid's, or really Grindelwald's, concern about Horcruxes, why didn't you mention him? Why did you tell me that Danny, Michelle, and me were the last Parselmouths when Grindelwald was still around? And why did Grindelwald even bring up Horcruxes?"

Dumbledore seemed a little uncomfortable. "I thought it was best not to mention him. You have had so much to deal with in your life that I didn't want to worry you further. I didn't think you needed to know about a defeated Dark Lord locked away. Nor the fact that he was family."

Harry gave a disbelieving laugh. "Yeah, it seems like a lot of my family members are trying to kill me. Voldemort, Drake, Grindelwald. I'm sure Slytherin would have too. Oh god, I just realized. With Grindelwald's mother being a descendant of Le Fay, that makes me related to her by marriage. I think I'm going to be sick."

Dumbledore gave a nervous laugh. "Yes, it does seem that a fair amount of your family wants you dead. But once Grindelwald is defeated, I'm certain you will have nothing to worry about ever again. And to answer your question about Grindelwald, in his Hagrid disguise, asking about Horcruxes, I'm sure he was trying to get me to mention his and that it would give him a clue to its whereabouts."

"No wonder he seemed disappointed." said Harry. "Well, I guess we'll have to find his Horcrux before he does. Do you know where it is?"

Dumbledore made a 'sort of' gesture. "It was I that hid it. At first I hid it in the Mirror of Erised. You remember that, don't you Harry?"

"Of course." Harry replied. "It's the same place you hid the Sorcerer's Stone."

"Quite the memory you have there." said Dumbledore. "Yes, the Mirror was removed from its hiding place so that I could also place the Stone inside. Then it was returned back to its original hiding spot. But after you and Quirrel managed to get to the Mirror, I felt that it would be better for a different hiding place."

"Great, so where is it?" asked Ron.

Dumbledore shrugged. "This I do not know."

"What do you mean, you don't know?" asked Ginny.

"Just that." said Dumbledore. "I don't know. I thought it would be best to have the Mirror hidden in a place not even I know about. All I know is what is in the Mirror and how to get it out."

"So how do you get it out?" asked Luna.

"I believe Harry can answer that." said Dumbledore smiling.

Harry nodded. "The only person that wants to find it but not use it can get it."

"Correct." said Dumbledore. "And since Grindelwald would be the only one that can use it, he wouldn't be able to get it. But that doesn't mean others can't get it for him. You must get to it first."

"But we don't know where it is." said Hermione.

"No, but Professor Flitwick does." said Dumbledore. "I told him to hide the Mirror, but I did not tell him what lies within it. You must find him."

"Well I'm sure Snow can find him." said Ginny. "She can find anyone."

"Well then lets get going." said Harry.

"Harry, remember one thing." said Dumbledore. "Grindelwald is not like Voldemort. He will not play games or, display his power, or cause you pain. He is a ruthless killer that will try and defeat you as soon as possible. Just kill and get it over with, that's his style."

Harry nodded. "I understand."

"And Harry."

Harry looked up at Dumbledore. He was shocked to see the old man start crying.

"Sir?"

"Harry, I am sorry." said Dumbledore sadly.

"For what, Albus?" Harry asked in confusion.

"For everything." said Dumbledore. "This is all my fault. I have been foolish. I have fallen prey to what Voldemort always thought those that loved were. Weak. I have been weak. I had Grindelwald in my power. I should have finished him then and there. I knew it was too risky to keep him captive. But I didn't have it in me to kill him when he was defenseless. There are some people, like Voldemort and Grindelwald, that can only be stopped by death. It is sad but true. And I was not willing to do what it took to win. I did not, could not kill him. And now he has escaped, and you must face him. I have given him a chance to once again take over. I have given him the opportunity to kill again. I should have killed him when I had the chance. But I couldn't. I was too weak."

"Enough!" said Harry loudly. "I don't want to hear it, Albus. Listen to yourself. This is not you. You are not weak. You believe the best in people and always hope that they can change. Choosing not to take a life is not weakness. You were doing what you felt was right. Things may not have worked out the way you planned, but just because Grindelwald decided to continue being a psychotic murder is not your fault. You did what you could, and now it's our turn. I don't want you to beat yourself up over this Albus. I shall see to it that he is stopped."

And with that he left the room with the others following him, completely shocked. Even Dumbledore was surprised by Harry's response.

"You know Albus, he's turning out so much like you." said McGonagall.

Dumbledore managed a smile. "Indeed he is Minerva. And I couldn't be more proud of him. I just hope he doesn't make the same mistakes as me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: The end of another chapter. This one explores a bunch of my theories. Oh, and for those of you that haven't read my first story, allow me to explain how Harry is related to Voldemort and Grindelwald. In my first story, Harry discovers that the founders of Hogwarts were cousins, descendants of Merlin. Both Voldemort and Grindelwald are descendants of Slytherin and Harry is a descendant of Gryffindor. Hope that explains everything. Later.)


	13. Inferi Attack

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: This is one of my favorite chapters. I hope you like it.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 13: Inferi Attack**

Things were pretty bad for awhile. There was no trace of Grindelwald anywhere. Hagrid, Madam Maxime, and their son Billy were found in the same cave Sirius Black had hidden in years ago up in Hogsmeade. They had been stunned, tied up,  _and_  placed under the Imperius Curse.

"Which would explain why Madame Maxime looked so tired when we saw her at the Valentine's Day Ball." said Harry.

Of course Grindelwald would have needed to keep Hagrid alive in order to get the information he needed and to continue making the Polyjuice Potion. Madame Maxime and Billy were kept alive too so they could make small appearances at times in order to avoid suspicion. All three of them had been sent to St. Mungo's.

Harry had set Snow off to find Flitwick with an important letter attached to her leg. It had been a little over a week since then, but Snow had still not returned. Harry waited anxiously for an answer.

"Harry." said Ginny.

"Yes."

"I'm scared for you." she said. "So are the kids. It seems that everything happens to you."

Harry sighed. "I know. I'm scared too. Not for my safety, but for yours and the kids."

"I just don't know what I would do if I lost you." said Ginny, starting to tear up.

Harry felt guilty for making her worry. He wrapped his arms around her to comfort her. "Don't worry, Gin, I'll be fine. I'm not going to let Grindelwald do anything to hurt you or anyone else."

"It's  _you_  I'm worried about."

"I know, love. But after this, it will finally and truly be over. It started with Voldemort. He was the one that started this. Once he was defeated he got Drake to take his place. And now Drake got Grindelwald to take his place. But he's the last Dark Lord. And the last person who wants me dead. Actually he doesn't even care about me. It's the Unbreakable Vow that's sending him after me. But he's the last. It will finally be over after this."

Ginny hugged him tightly. "I know you're right. I just love you so much, and it makes me mad to know that so much has happened to you."

"Ginny I promise this will be the final fight." Harry vowed.

"And I'll stand with you just like I always have." said Ginny. "Nothing can keep me away. I love you."

"I love you too, Ginny. My sunshine."

A loud knocking woke Harry up. Ginny, who he was holding tightly in his arms, woke up too. The two of them had apparently fallen asleep on the couch.

"HARRY! GINNY!" they heard Ron cry. "LET ME IN!"

Harry waved his hand and the door opened. Ron stumbled into the room looking terrified.

"Ron what-" said Ginny.

"Harry… Ginny… you... have… have to come… quick!" said Ron, completely out of breath. "Hog… Hogwarts… is… under… under attack!"

"WHAT?!" shouted Harry and Ginny.

"The Astronomy… Tower… quick!" Ron gasped.

The two of them didn't even wait for Ron. They rushed past him and headed for the Astronomy Tower. All the teachers were there.

"What's going on?" asked Ginny.

"Inferi!" said Hermione. "There's gotta be at least 300 of them! Look!"

She pointed towards the Forbidden Forest. Sure enough, the lifeless army of Inferi were slowly making their way towards Hogwarts.

"Merlin's beard, look at them all!" gasped Ginny.

"That's got to be an entire cemetery." said Neville.

"So Grindelwald is trying to take over the school." said Harry. "Well we'll just see about this. WANDS READY!"

Everyone obeyed as the Inferi drew closer.

"USE FIRE SPELLS!" Harry shouted.

Several voices cried out  _"Incendio!"_

Balls of fire flew at the Inferi. Several of them caught on fire and scrambled around, but the others kept going.

"KEEP IT UP!" Harry yelled.

" _Incendio! Incendio! Incendio!"_

The Inferi continued to burn, but refused to give up their attack.

"We're going to need something more." said Hermione.  _"Fines Finium!"_

The Inferi stopped as they ran into an invisible wall. They began pounding on it and piling up.

"That won't hold them long." said Hermione.

"Then lets stop them before they break through." said Harry.  _"Jaculum Pluvia!"_

Several arrows shot out of his wand. With another flick of his wand, all the arrows caught on fire and struck the Inferi.

"Lets see how they like this." said Ron.  _"Diruo Impetus!"_

A glowing blue ball of power shot out of his wand. It flew at the army of Inferi. There was a loud sonic boom as an explosion of pressure blew the Inferi apart.

"Nice one!" said Neville. He repeated the spell Ron used, blowing apart the Inferi.

The Inferi started to retreat.

"DON'T STOP!" someone shouted to the Inferi. "GET INTO THE WATER AND CONTINUE YOUR ASSAULT!"

Harry spotted Grindelwald down by Hagrid's hut, giving orders to his army of the dead.

"Damn him!" said Harry.

Then to everyone's shock, Harry jumped off the tower. He stopped his fall by transforming into his phoenix Animagus form. He flew at the Inferi. There was a flash of light and Harry was engulfed in flames. He flew into the army of Inferi, leaving a trail of fire behind.

He continued flying through the crowd and started making his way to Grindelwald. As he was getting close, Grindelwald pointed his wand at the ground and muttered a spell Harry couldn't hear over his phoenix flame. He was about to reach the Dark Lord when something huge burst up from under the ground. Harry pulled back. It took him a few seconds to realize that Grindelwald had resurrected Aragog. The giant spider was now one of Grindelwald's Inferi. It moved to protect its master, slashing out at Harry with its legs.

Harry was forced to back off. He couldn't handle Aragog alone. Not even as a flaming phoenix. He flew back to the Astronomy Tower. His flames went out as he changed back to his normal self.

"He's reanimated Aragog." said Harry.

"No kidding." said Ron in a squeaky voice.

"The wall is giving away!" shouted Hermione.

Sure enough, Hermione's wall was indeed crumbling. The invisible wall shattered and vanished. The flaming Inferi scrambled into the water. They could get to Hogwarts the rest of the way underwater.

"We're in trouble now." said Harry.

"Wait! I have an idea!" cried Ginny.

She took off running.

"Ginny, where are you going?" Harry called after her.

"I'll be back! Stall them!" she called back.

"Harry, the spider is coming." whimpered Ron.

He was right. Aragog ran forward to Hogwarts. He reached the lake and vanished under the surface. Then everything was quiet. Everyone waited in anticipation for the Inferi to resurfaces. Every now and then Harry would steal glances at Grindelwald.

"I hope Ginny has a good idea." said Hermione. "Once they come up…"

"I know." said Harry.  _"Please hurry, Gin."_  he thought to himself.

A cold wet hand broke the surface of the water and grabbed onto the wall of Hogwarts. The first Inferi, now all blackened and burned, began climbing up the wall. Soon other Inferi began slowly rising out of the lake and began climbing.

"Merlin help us." whispered McGonagall.

The Inferi made their way up to the top.

" _Inflammo Exustio!"_  Harry cried, as the first Inferi came up the side.

Instead of a fireball, flames shot out of his wand like a flamethrower. An inhuman wail came from the Inferi. It let go of the edge and fell back into the water. It was working well at first, but more and more Inferi came.

"Forget this." said Ron, sounding very frustrated.  _"Ferrum Gladius!"_

His wand turned into a sword. He began hacking away at the Inferi.

"That will only slow them down!" Harry shouted. "You need to use fire!"

Ron didn't seem to hear him, as he continued hacking away. Harry was about to cry out to him again, but something he saw made him catch his voice in his throat. Grindelwald was standing right by Dumbledore's grave. The White Tomb was slowly rising. With a wave of his wand, the top flew off.

"No." Harry whispered.

Grindelwald pointed his wand into the tomb. There was a flash of light.

"No!"

A skeleton hand with long fingers grabbed the side of the tomb. The skeleton body of Albus Dumbledore stood up.

"NO!"

"Harry look out!" shouted Hermione.

Harry ducked as flames flew out of Hermione's wand, incinerating the Inferi behind him.

"Harry, the spider!" Ron shrieked.

Aragog began crawling up the side of the castle. It would be very difficult to fight off the giant spider. And it was moving fast.

"Harry!"

It was Ginny. She was back from where ever she had gone. And she had someone with her. It was Charlie. He was carrying a crate.

"Looks like I'm just in time." Charlie said.

He opened the crate. Three birds flew out. He waved his wand and the birds turned back into dragons.

"Burn them!" he cried.

The dragons obeyed his command and began breathing fire over the Inferi. Their flames were so strong that the Inferi were reduced to ashes in a few seconds.

At that moment, Aragog climbed over the side. Harry set fire to it, but Aragog ignored the flames. It pounced at Harry. Suddenly flames blew it backwards and completely incinerated the giant spider. Harry looked at the dragon that had saved him. He recognized it.

"Norbert!" he gasped.

The dragon let out a mighty roar before returning to the Inferi.

"Harry!"

He turned to see Ginny running at him. She threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

"I was so worried about you." said Harry.

" _I_  was worried about you." said Ginny.

"You're a genius, you know that?" he said, looking at the dragons.

There was a hissing sound that came behind him. Harry turned around and froze. It was Dumbledore. Or what was left of him. The Inferi raised its arms and began walking towards Harry and Ginny.

"Albus?" said Harry, raising his wand.

The Inferi ignored him.

"Albus!"

"It's not him, Harry." said Ginny. "It's just his body. And it's under Grindelwald's control. That is  _not_  Dumbledore."

Dumbledore tackled Harry.

" _Incendio!"_  Harry cried.

There was so much power behind the spell, that Dumbledore went flying backwards through the air. A dragon flew by and obliterated Dumbledore's corpse completely.

It was over. The Inferi were defeated. But to everyone's disappointment, Grindelwald escaped.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Whew, close call. Can you imagine and army of Inferi slowly approaching you? And Aragog, Ron must have been terrified. I feel sort of bad for defiling Dumbledore's grave. But I thought it would be interesting.)
> 
> Jaculum Pluvia - dart shower
> 
> Inflammo Exustio - set fire to
> 
> Ferrum Gladius - iron sword


	14. Pieces of the Puzzle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Whew, this chapter took awhile to write. I hope you like it. But first I would like to apologize. It seems I may have upset a few people last chapter with bringing Dumbledore back as an Inferi. I have as much respect for the dead as anyone. I was just trying to think like a Dark Lord. Hopefully this chapter will take your minds off of it.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 14: Pieces of the Puzzle**

Snow arrived with Flitwick's reply the day after the Inferi attacked. He said he would meet them in The Hog's Head on Thursday. Neville and Luna said they wanted to join them. After all, they were there when they learned the truth about Grindelwald.

Thursday rolled around, and soon Harry and them others were meeting with their former Charms teacher.

"Mr. and Mrs. Potter, good to see you." said Flitwick cheerfully. "Mr. and Mrs. Weasley too. Oh, and the Longbottoms. Wonderful. It's like an old school reunion. So Mr. Weasley, are you taking care of my old class? Oops, I guess I should say Professor Weasley."

"You can call us by our first names, sir." said Ginny.

Flitwick chuckled. "Well you can call me by mine then too. There's no need for this 'sir'."

"Yes sir. I mean Filius."

Flitwick smiled and took a seat. "So, what can I do for you all? Not that I'm not happy to see you again."

"We actually have a bit of a problem." said Harry. "We need your help."

"Really? Well I'll be happy to help anyway I can."

"Then can you tell us where you hid the Mirror of Erised?" Hermione asked.

Flitwick suddenly seemed uncomfortable. "Ah, I don't know if that is such a good idea. Albus told me not to tell anyone anything of its whereabouts."

"We know." said Harry. "He hid something inside it. I don't know if you know yet, but Grindelwald is alive and he has escaped from Azkaban."

Flitwick's mouth dropped open. "But he was reported to be found dead in his cell."

Harry shook his head. "It was a trick. He's very much alive."

"Oh dear, this is dreadful. But what does this have to do with the Mirror's whereabouts?"

"Grindelwald wants what's in the mirror." explained Hermione.

"That's right, and we need to get to it before he does." said Ron.

Flitwick nodded in understanding. "Yes, I see. If Grindelwald wants it, it can't be good. Yes, I would be happy to help. But…"

Harry didn't like the sound of that. "But what?"

The former Charms teacher moved uncomfortably in his seat. "Well, Albus told me to make certain that no one could find, but still have a way to get to it. So, you see, I used a Memory Charm on myself to forget."

Harry was stunned. His friends were too. What now? How were they supposed to find the Mirror if the person who hid it didn't know where it was?

"Now what do we do?" asked Neville.

"Not to worry, not to worry, there's still a way to find it." said Flitwick.

"What? How?" Ron cried.

Harry was wondering the same thing. He remembered that Voldemort had broke through the Memory Charm placed on Bertha Jorkins by torturing her, but Flitwick couldn't have been planning on them doing that.

"I extracted the memory before I erased mine." Flitwick explained. "This way no one would know where it is, but there is still a way to find it."

Harry breathed a sigh of relief.

"Where's the memory?" Luna asked. "Do you have it?"

Flitwick shook his head. "No, it was to be kept separated from me. This way if someone found out what was in the mirror, and who hid it, they would still need to find out who has the memory of the hiding spot."

"Ingenious." said Hermione. "So who has it?

"Minerva McGonagall." said Flitwick. "I told her the same thing Albus told me. She probably did something to keep the memory hidden. She has no idea what the memory is of either. And not even Albus knows she has the memory."

"I see." said Harry. "So, back to Hogwarts. Thank you Filius."

"Anytime Harry. Good luck to you all."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"So that's what the memory contains." said McGonagall. "I always wondered."

"So you have it?" asked Harry.

"Not on me." said McGonagall. "It's at Gringotts. I thought it would be safer there. We best be going. Better sooner than later."

She walked over to the fireplace and threw in some Floo Powder.

"I'll see you there." she said. "Diagon Alley."

There was a flash of green flames and McGonagall was gone. The others followed her lead.

"Now then, shall we be off." said McGonagall, dusting herself off.

"You guys sure went all out to hide this." said Ron.

"Well we each did one thing." said McGonagall. "It all adds up to the Mirror's hiding place."

Gringotts Bank was the same as it always was. Goblins running here and there, witches and wizards making withdraws and deposits, and warning signs everywhere threatening thieves.

"Excuse me, I would like to take something out of my vault." said McGonagall.

The goblin stared McGonagall down. "Really? And who might you be?"

McGonagall stared back at the goblin. "Minerva McGonagall."

"And would you happen to have your key? Or are you merely someone pretending to be the real McGonagall?"

McGonagall continued to glare at the goblin. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a key. She impatiently slammed it down on the desk. The goblin grudgingly took it.

"Follow me."

Harry never got used to the ride through the caves of Gringotts, which made him all the more happier to have a wizard credit card. He shuddered at the memory of the day Ginny got them the cards. It was the very same day Drake had kidnapped her and Michelle. Harry put the thought out of his mind for now. That was in the past. He had to focus on the search for the Mirror.

"Here we are." said the goblin. "Make it fast."

The others climbed out of the cart. "I think I got whiplash." said Neville, rubbing his neck.

"I heard that when a goblin stops the cart fast enough for you to get whiplash, it means he's really trying to break your neck so he can steal your fortune." said Luna.

Harry really doubted this, but decided not to say anything. Luna was almost impossible to convince otherwise once she thought one thing. Especially if there was no proof on what she was talking about.

McGonagall opened her vault and went inside. A few seconds later she came out. She was holding something that looked like it was Disillusioned. She tapped it with her wand and the small box was no longer Disillusioned.

"It's in here." said McGonagall. "But we can't open it. It requires a password. I'm afraid I don't know what it is."

Harry groaned. This was really getting annoying.

"Can't you just use Alohamora?" Neville asked.

The others gave him a look that made Neville realize he had just asked a stupid question.

"So who knows the password?" asked Ginny.

McGonagall frowned. "I'm afraid it's Albus's brother Aberforth. This box was once his. Before he died that is. Only he knows the password."

"Oh come ON!" Harry cried. This was getting ridiculous. Aberforth had been dead for years. Snape had been all too happy to tell Harry about it. He was, in fact, the one that killed him. "So now what?"

"Perhaps Albus kept some pictures of him." Ron suggested.

Hermione squealed with joy. "Ron you're a genius!"

"Well I guess I learned a few things from you." said Ron, putting an arm around her.

"Guys, can you do this some other time?" asked Ginny.

"Sorry." they said together.

"So, back to Hogwarts." said Luna. "Just be careful in case our goblin tries to kill us again."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Dumbledore was very impressed with McGonagall's and Flitwick's ways of hiding the Mirror. And he did happen to have a picture of Aberforth.

"There is a portrait in the school that contains my brother." he said. "If you'll give me a moment I'll go fetch him."

Dumbledore left his frame and went in search of his brother.

"I never knew there was a portrait of Aberforth here." said Ron.

"I didn't either." said Hermione. "There are a lot of portraits in Hogwarts. We probably saw him but didn't know it was him."

Dumbledore reappeared in his frame a few seconds later. "He's coming. He'll be here in a moment."

And a moment later Aberforth Dumbledore squeezed in with his brother. He looked a lot like Dumbledore, except for a few different things. His beard was shorter and was a dark gray rather than silvery white. He was more tan than Dumbledore too and he did not wear glasses.

"Greeting to you all." said Aberforth. His voice was deeper than Dumbledore's. "This is really the first time we're meeting each other."

"I remember you." said Harry. "You've said hi to me a few times in the hall."

Aberforth smiled. "Well of course. I say hello to everyone that passes me. But I do not believe than I was brought all the way here to say hello. Albus said there was something important that needs my assistance."

"Yes, we need the password to open your chest." said Ginny, pointing to the box in McGonagall's hands.

"Why I haven't seen that in years." said Aberforth. "I remember I used to use that box to hide my… never mind. I lent it to Minerva for as a favor. I did find it strange that she didn't want to know how to open it."

"It was to make sure no one could get me to open it unwanted." said McGonagall.

"Ah. I see. So now you would like to know the password."

"If you don't mind."

"Not at all. The password is  _'The Four Founders of Hogwarts'."_

As Aberforth said the password, the box opened. McGonagall reached inside and took out a small bottle filled with a silver liquid. She poured the memory into the Penseive.

"Finally we can see where the Mirror is." said Harry.

He dove into the Penseive, followed by the others.

They landed in the Department of Mysteries. Harry felt uneasy in the circular room. He never did like it here. It always brought the memory of Sirius falling through the Veil.

"Harry over there." said Ginny.

She pointed to one of the doors. Flitwick came through it. He waved his wand and a fiery X appeared on the door. Once the door closed all the doors spun around. When they finally stopped the X remained on the door.

"Hagrid, you can come in now!" cried Flitwick.

Another one of the doors opened and Hagrid entered the circular room.

"So what did yeh put in there?" he asked.

"Can't tell you Hagrid, sorry." replied Flitwick. "Are you ready for the Fidelius Charm?"

"O' course. Whenever yer ready." said Hagrid.

He got down on his knees by Flitwick. The tiny wizard raised his wand over Hagrid's head.

"Do you, Rubeus Hagrid, take on the responsibility of being Secret Keeper?" he asked.

"I do."

"Then let the knowledge be spoken only by him." said Flitwick.  _"Fidelis!"_

Two strings of light came out of Flitwick's wand. One connected to the door and the other connected to Hagrid's head. There was a flash of light and it was over. The door that had the X on it seemed to shrink and melt away, until it was gone.

Realizing that this was all they needed to see, Harry and the others exited the Penseive.

"So now we need to go see Hagrid and get him to reveal the location of the door." said Hermione.

"We're going around in bloody circles." Ron groaned. "From Hogwarts to Hogsmeade, then back to Hogwarts, to Diagon Alley, to Hogwarts again, and now Diagon Alley again."

"Stop complaining." Ginny snapped. "Imagine how hard this would have been without everyone's help."

"Well if you don't need me anymore, I'll stay here." said McGonagall. "Good luck with Hagrid."

"Thanks Minerva." said Harry. "And we're off again."

"I'll bet Hagrid will be happy for some company." said Luna.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Hagrid was always happy for some company. Especially while in St. Mungo's. Madam Maxime and Billy took up two of the other beds in the room. Billy's bed was on the floor since his size and weight was too much for the beds to handle.

"Good ter have some company." said Hagrid. "It gets dull in 'ere after a while."

"Yez, it'z splendid to have veezitorz." said Madam Maxime.

"The doctors said we could leave in a few days." said Billy.

"That's good to hear." said Hermione.

"Yeah, it'll be good to have the  _real_  Hagrid back." said Ron.

"Yeh have a spider in yer hair." said Hagrid, pointing at Ron's head.

Ron let out a cry like a girl and began brushing his head. The spider fell off and crawled away. Hagrid chuckled.

"Now Ron there ain' nothin' ter be afraid of." said Hagrid. "Aren' yeh a little old to be afraid of them?"

"No!"

Hagrid chuckled again.

"You know Hagrid, aren't you a little old to still be afraid to say Voldemort?" Ginny teased.

Hagrid shuddered. "That's different. He was something ter be afraid of. I have tried ter say the name, yeh know. I jus' don' feel comfortable saying it."

Harry frowned. "Hagrid, I feel like this is partly my fault."

Hagrid gave him a confused look. "What yeh mean?"

"Grindelwald said Voldemort's name." Harry explained. "I should have realized something was up. I knew how you couldn't say his name. But I didn't catch onto the fact that you saying the name all of a sudden was suspicious."

Hagrid waved it aside. "Harry, don' yeh dare go feelin' bad about that. Yeh thought I had finally overcome my fears. No one else picked up on it either. I don' want yeh ter blame yourself. We don' blame you, righ'?"

Madam Maxime and Billy shook their heads.

"No way. Not at all"

"Ve don't blame you in ze zlighteest."

"Yeh see." said Hagrid. "You have nothin' ter feel guilty about."

Harry smiled. "Thanks Hagrid. But we still have a problem. Grindelwald is still out there. We need your help to stop him."

"O' course." said Hagrid, looking determine. "There may not be much I can do while I'm in 'ere, but if I can help in anyway, I'll be more than happy to help."

"Then tell us the location that Filius Flitwick hid the Mirror of Erised in the Department of Mysteries."

Hagrid's eyes widened. "So that's what he was hidin'. Wow, that was over twenty years ago."

"You do remember, don't you?" asked Ron in a concerned voice.

"O' course I remember!" Hagrid cried, sounding a little insulted. "It's impossible for someone ter forget the location that's concealed in their soul. That's something yeh always know."

"So where is it?" asked Neville.

"What? Oh righ' the location." said Hagrid. "Anyway, the location ter Flitwick's hidden item is in the fourth door ter the left of the entrance, in the Department of Mysteries."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

It was always hard to go into the Department of Mysteries for the six of them. Especially for Harry. The haunting memory of Sirius dying was still fresh in his mind even after all these years. It was even harder now, since Harry was forced to kill Drake two years ago. The memories were painful, and it never got any easier to come back.

But that was in the past. Harry had long gotten over the guilt that had been tormenting him. But the memories always came back here. Harry just wanted to get the Horcrux and get out.

Harry, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Luna entered the department of Mysteries. It was the same as always. Unless you counted the new door that seemed to magically appear out of nowhere.

"Better mark it." said Hermione.

She waved her wand and a fiery X appeared over the fourth door to the left of the entrance.

The door closed and the room rotated like it always did. But the flaming X showed them the door they must go through.

"This is it." said Harry.

The door opened for the first time in years. A cold dark room was on the other side. The Mirror of Erised stood in the middle of the room. On each side of the Mirror were two bat-like statues towering eight feet over the six of them.

They carefully entered the room and the door closed behind them. The moment it did, the two bat-like statues started moving. Their stone bodies became real. One was brown and scaly while the other was green and scaly. Both their eyes were bright yellow, glaring at the intruders.

"Gargoyles!" gasped Hermione.

"They must be here to protect the Mirror." said Ginny.

The two gargoyles got into an attacking position. Saliva dripped from their jaws as they advanced on their prey.

Harry whipped out his wand. As Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, he knew exactly how to deal with such creatures.

" _Lumos!"_  he cried.

Bright light erupted from his wand. The gargoyles backed away. They hated the light.

The two gargoyles returned to their original positions and turned back to stone. Harry quickly sent a stunner at both gargoyle statues in case they decided to attack once the light went out.

"Ok, this has been one of the greatest experiences of my life." said Ron sarcastically. "But can we please just get the Horcrux and get out of here?"

"Believe me Ron, I'll be just as happy to end this as you." said Harry.

He approached the Mirror and gazed at his reflection. At first he only saw himself, but then other figures appeared around him. It was his family. His whole family. His parents, Sirius, Dumbledore, Ginny, everyone. He was with them.

Harry reached up and put his hand against the glass. He knew he should be concentrating on getting the Horcrux, but the sight of his family wiped the thought away.

"Harry?" said Ginny. "What's wrong? What do you see?"

Harry was about to answer her when an alarm went off. He turned around to face the others.

"An intruder." said Ron.

"Grindelwald!" gasped Ginny and Luna.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Grindelwald ran to the Department of Mysteries. His prize would be in his grasp soon. Nothing would keep him away. He had been searching for it for years. He remembered back to the day he was broken out of Azkaban and swore to obey Drake.

" _You have made a wise decision my friend." said Drake. "With the two of us working together we will soon concur this world."_

_Grindelwald walked by Drake. "I have no reason to work with you. You broke me out of Azkaban to kill Harry Potter. Once I do, we'll have no further reason to work together. We will go our separate ways. But first I have my own mission to complete."_

" _And what is your mission?" asked Drake. "You never told me."_

" _That's because I don't want you to know." Grindelwald growled. "It has nothing to do with you."_

_Drake smirked. "Well you better do it fast. If you don't, I'll kill Potter myself, and you will be unable to fulfill the Unbreakable Vow. You know what will happen then."_

" _Of course I do!" snapped Grindelwald. "You forget, I'm far older and wiser than you. And once I kill Potter, you and I are through."_

" _But until then, you are my servant." sneered Drake. "Now give me your arm."_

_Grindelwald glared at him and held out his arm. Drake grabbed it and pulled up the sleeve. He held his wand over Grindelwald's arm. A glowing silver blade grew out of the end of his wand. Grindelwald raised his eyebrows at the New Dark Lord._

" _What are you going to do?" he asked._

" _Branding you with the Dark Mark." Drake explained. "It is a method of communication. Hold still."_

_He cut into Grindelwald's arm. The older wizard winced in pain. The silver blade retracted back into Drake's wand. A trail of blood ran down Grindelwald's arm. Drake traced the cut with his wand and lifted it away. A trail of blood went with it._

"Atrum Vestigium!"  _cried Drake._

_The floating trail of blood burst into flames. Drake pressed the tip of his wand against the cut on Grindelwald's arm. The flaming blood settled back down on the wound. Grindelwald winced again as the fire burned him. Then the flames went out. His wound healed leaving the Dark Mark branded on his arm._

" _It is done." said Drake. "You now bare the Dark Mark. You may now go and do your mission. Whatever it is."_

_Drake walked away from Grindelwald, who was rubbing his burned arm. He glared at Drake with great hatred._

" _Some day I will rise again." Grindelwald vowed. "When that day comes, nothing will ever stop me."_

Well that day had finally come. No more games. No more distractions.

"This world is mine!" Grindelwald shouted.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"Harry quick, get the Horcrux!" cried Neville.

Harry returned his attention back to the Mirror. He needed the Horcrux. This was his deepest desire. To get the Horcrux and destroy it so he could save his friends and family.

Slowly the people in the Mirror faded until only Harry was left. His reflection just stood there a moment. Then a familiar thing happened. His reflection reached into his pocket, and took out a pendant. His reflection smiled and winked at him before putting the pendant back into his pocket. At the same time, Harry felt something fall into his own pocket.

Quickly Harry reached into his pocket and pulled out the Pendant of Le Fay. It hung on a silver chain. On the silver pendant was a large white diamond surrounded by smaller clear diamonds. On the back was a large M, for Morgan Le Fay.

The door burst open and Grindelwald stood in the doorway.

" _Accio Pendant!"_  he cried.

The pendant flew out of Harry's hand and into Grindelwald's. The Lord of the Dead held onto it tightly before crying out in triumph. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Talk about going all out to hide something. Then again, it was a piece of Grindelwald's soul. And now he has it back. Oh, and if you're confused as to how he got into the Dept. of Mysteries and found out where his Horcrux was, that will be explained in the next chapter.)
> 
> Atrum Vestigium - dark mark.


	15. Searching

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: All right, now the fighting will begin. But before it does, did anyone figure out how Grindelwald got his Horcrux back? I know at least one person did.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 15: Searching**

"The Pendant of Le Fay is mine again!" exclaimed Grindelwald.

Harry swore angrily. He had had it. The pendant had been in his hands. After all that, it was taken.

"It's not possible." said Hermione. "You shouldn't be able to see the door unless Hagrid told you about it."

Grindelwald smirked. "He did tell me."

"Hagrid would never do that!" snapped Ginny.

"Of course he wouldn't." agreed Grindelwald. "So I needed another way to get him to tell me. It is where my Animagus form came in handy. Remember that spider one your head, Ron?"

"That was you!" Ron exclaimed. Grindelwald smiled more broadly. "It was bad enough when I thought it was a plain old spider. I should have crushed you."

"It wouldn't have killed me." said Grindelwald. He held up the pendant. "Thanks to this." He put the pendant around his neck. "I should really be thanking you. I never would have found it without you."

Harry started to raise his wand, but Grindelwald beat him to it.

"Careful." said Grindelwald. "Life is a very fragile thing. You want every second of it. You wouldn't want me to kill you right away, would you?"

Harry eyed the others. They looked back. Understanding was showing in each of their eyes. He turned back to Grindelwald. The two glared at each other. Harry knew that if he used the Killing Curse it would be useless. He would have to destroy his Horcrux first.

" _Stupefy!"_  cried Harry.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_  cried Grindelwald, at the same time.

Harry missed. He ducked out of the way of the Killing Curse. The spell hit the Mirror of Erised. It shattered, sending broken glass flying everywhere. The great mirror was no more.

" _Stupefy!"_  cried five other voices.

Grindelwald tried to dodge all the spells, but only managed to avoid two. He blocked two more of them, but the final one would surely hit. Or so it seemed. A second shield came up to protect Grindelwald.

Grindelwald smirked at them. He showed how he managed to block all the spells. He had, not one, but  _two_  wands. One in each hand.

"Two wands?" gasped Ron. "No one has ever had two wands."

"I thought it would give me a bit of an advantage." said Grindelwald. "If I was going to face Harry Potter, the most powerful wizard in the world, I would have to be prepared. Don't take it so personally, Potter. You're nothing to me. I have nothing against you. I am merely bound by the Unbreakable Vow to kill you. Now lets not make this anymore difficult than it already is."

"Go to Hell!" snapped Ginny.

"No, my dear." said Grindelwald, pointing to the pendant. "That is what this is for. To prevent that. But you have nothing protecting you. I have nothing against any of you. But I can't let you leave knowing about my Horcrux.  _Avada Kedavra!"_

Jets of green light shot out of his two wands. The others ducked and sent their own spells. Grindelwald, with two wands, easily blocked them.

Harry pointed his wand at the broken pieces of the Mirror. The razor sharp glass flew at Grindelwald.

" _Stupefy!"_

" _Expelliarmus!"_

" _Expelliarmus!"_

" _Impedimenta!"_

" _Accio Horcrux!"_

Grindelwand had to use one of his wands to protect his Horcrux while he cast a shield to protect himself from the spells and glass with his other wand. All the spells were too much for his shield. It shattered and Grindelwald was thrown backwards. The door closed behind him. Harry and the others felt the rooms start to rotate. At least Grindelwald wouldn't be able to charge in after them.

"Guys listen, you should get out of here. I'll deal with Grindelwald." said Harry.

"Harry James Potter, you are  _not_  going to face him alone!" said Ginny fiercely.

"He's after me." said Harry. "There's no reason for you guys to risk your lives."

"Harry, Harry, how many times have we gone through this?" said Hermione. "You always say that you want to do things on your own. We know you just want to protect us, but we need to protect you too. You can't do everything on your own"

"She's right, mate." said Ron. "We've never left you before, and we're not leaving you now."

"We're with you too." said Neville. "Remember the first time we all fought together? It was right here in the Department of Mysteries."

"The greatest gift in life is friends." said Luna. "And friends stick together, no matter what."

"Besides, what would you do if you were in our position?" asked Ron.

Harry couldn't help but smile. He was, once again, overruled by his friends.

"Then what are we waiting for?" said Harry. "Lets end this. Once and for all."

He went over to the door and tried to open it, but couldn't.

"The rooms must still be spinning." said Hermione.

"They should have stopped by now." said Ron.

"He must have opened another door."

"Then we'll have to be careful." said Harry. "Who knows where he could be."

He remembered what Dumbledore had told him about Grindelwald. He wasn't like Voldemort. He didn't fool around or play with his victims. He went right out and killed them right away. He technically didn't even duel. He just killed. This definitely made him more dangerous than Voldemort. Harry wondered how Dumbledore managed to defeat Grindelwald in the first place.

Thinking of that suddenly made Harry angry. He remembered what Grindelwald had done to Dumbledore's body. He had used it as a tool for darkness. How dare he! Disrespecting Dumbledore like that. Using his body to hurt others. Harry couldn't bare to think what it would be like to find out his body was used for evil after he died. This madness would have to stop.

He tried the door again. This time it opened. Very slowly he poked his head out. Grindelwald wasn't in the circular room. Which meant that he must be searching for them in another room, or waiting for a chance to sneak up on them.

They exited the room and closed the door. The doors began spinning.

"Where is he?" asked Ron.

"He must be in one of the rooms." said Ginny. "He said he wouldn't let us leave."

"We should split up." said Neville. "With the six of us searching we should be able to find him."

Harry didn't like the idea of leaving the others with a psycho that would kill on sight hiding in one of the rooms, but Neville was right. They did stand a better chance separating.

"Alright, we'll split into groups of two." said Harry.

Predictably, Harry and Ginny went together, while Ron went with Hermione, and Neville with Luna.

"Everyone watch each others back." said Harry. "Remember, he'll kill without hesitation."

The groups went to three different doors. Harry and Ginny approached one of the doors.

"Open it and get out of the way." said Harry.

Ginny nodded. She opened the door and jumped to the side. Harry sent a stunner inside. There was something strange about the room. It took him a minute to realize that the room was underwater, but the water didn't pour out.

"I think it's ok." said Harry.

"He can't have gone in there." said Ginny.

"He could if he used the Bubble Head Charm." said Harry.

Harry tapped his head with his wand and a large bubble appeared over his head. Ginny repeated his actions. The two of them entered the underwater room.

"Wish I knew how to do this during the Triwizard Tournament." said Harry. His voice echoed around his head in his bubble.

"What?" asked Ginny.

Harry could barely understand her. He figured that being underwater and being blocked off by bubbles over their heads was making it hard to talk to each other.

Harry waved his hand in a never mind sort of way. The two of them swam around, looking for Grindelwald. It would be hard to find him here. There were so many places to hide. In the coral beds, in the seaweed patches, in the underwater caves. It would take a while to search.

Ginny tapped his shoulder. She pointed to a large patch of seaweed. There was definitely something moving in there.

" _Stupefy!"_  Harry cried.

The jet of red light flew into the seaweed. It made contact with something. The two of them carefully approached the patch of seaweed. A gigantic crab, about 12 feet from front to back, swam out of the patch of seaweed, snapping its claws at them.

Harry pulled Ginny away from the crab's snapping pinchers. The crab swam off and buried itself into the sand. Harry and Ginny laughed, more in relief than humor.

After a few more minutes of searching, they decided that Gridelwald wasn't in this room. If he was, they would have seen him by now, or he would have at least attacked them. This meant that he was in one of the other rooms. Harry hoped it wasn't one of the rooms any of the others went into.

Harry motioned for Ginny to follow him. They were wasting time in here. Any of the others could be in trouble, or dead. Harry hoped not.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Ron and Hermione entered one of the rooms. Hermione's eyes lit up as they saw that the room was full of books.

"Of course." said Ron sarcastically. "Why wouldn't they have a room like this?"

"These are probably ancient historical books." said Hermione in awe.

"Well he's obviously not in here." said Ron. "Unless he's behind a shelf."

"So start looking." said Hermione.

"This is bloody ridiculous." said Ron. "Why would he hide here? All we would have to do is look down each row,"

"Just keep an eye out." said Hermione. "He may have transformed."

"Oh great! Now I have to spider watch."

"Ron, shut up and start searching!"

Ron groaned but began climbing a ladder to check the top shelves. If Grindelwald had transformed, it would be next to impossible to find him in here. Just as he was thinking this he cried out and swatted something.

"What is it?" asked Hermione, from the ground.

"I think I got him." said Ron. "Yeah it's definitely a spider."

"Did it turn into Grindelwald?"

"No."

"Then it's not him. Honestly Ron, you can't freak out ever time you see a spider."

"Well it's not like-"

Ron stopped talking as the room began to change. All the books flew out from the shelves and reorganized themselves.

"What is this?" asked Ron.

"I don't know." said Hermione. "The books must change places."

"Why the bloody hell would they do that?"

Hermione shrugged. "I don't know. Did you put the book you swatted that spider with back in the right place? Maybe they put themselves back in the proper place if you mix them up."

Ron snorted. "That's just plain stu- Ahh!"

Ron lost his footing and nearly fell off the ladder. He was now dangling in the air, hanging onto one of the steps of the ladder.

"Hermione help!"

"Ron, just let go." said Hermione.

"No, get me down!"

Hermione rolled her eyes.  _"Winguardium Leviosa!_ Now let go."

Ron floated down to the ground, which wasn't really that far. He looked a little ashamed.

"Come on, he's not in here." said Hermione.

"Maybe one of the others found him." said Ron hopefully.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"Guess we should look in here." said Luna. She opened another door and gasped. "Oh… my… Neville look!"

"Luna get back!" cried Neville, thinking something was wrong.

"No look."

Neville looked into the room and gasped. There were what appeared to be animals of different kinds. All dead and stuffed. Many were extremely rare. The two entered the room, mouths open.

"Look at these." said Neville. "I hope the ministry didn't hunt these down just to put them on display."

"I heard that the ministry was going after many rare animals to store them so they'll never be completely gone."

Neville realized that for once one of Luna's crazy theories may be right. He was so busy observing the rare creatures that he didn't see the dark figure move behind him.

"Oh look, a Pegasus!" exclaimed Luna. "And look over here, a Gryphon, and a Chupacabra, and an Anti-mermaid. And, and, Merlin's beard! I don't believe it! Neville, do you know what this is?"

Neville looked at the creature she was pointing at. He was clueless. "No."

"It's a Crumple-Horned Snorkack!" Luna cried. "I  _told_  Hermione they were real!"

"Luna, this is really fascinating and everything, but we should really be…"

Neville caught sight of some movement.

"Luna, get down!"

Neville grabbed her and pulled her to the ground as a Killing Curse passed over where she was standing. Grindelwald jumped out of hiding, throwing Killing Curses everywhere. Neville and Luna scrabbled away from the rampaging wizard and hid among the many creatures.

"Oh Mr. and Mrs. Longbottom, come out, come out wherever you are." said Grindelwald.

He walked around the room, both wands raised. Less than a foot away, Neville hid under the massive body of a Cerberus. He saw Grindelwald slowly walking around. He looked at Luna, who was hiding behind a Garuda. Grindelwald passed both their hiding spots.

"Death is just part of life." said Grindelwald. "It leads to the next great adventure. Come out my friends, and meet your death. Face it standing tall. It will be quick and painless."

Luna tried to sneak out from her hiding place to get to Neville. Neville shook his head and silently told her to stay put. Unfortunately Grindelwald heard them.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_

The spell blasted the wing off the Garuda, sparing Luna. Grindelwald slowly made his way over to Luna's hiding place.

"You shouldn't have gotten involved." he said. "I wasn't even after you. I'm not really even after Harry. It's just business. I have to kill him. You should have left and enjoyed what time you had left in this world."

He was close enough to get a clear shot at Luna.

"No!" Neville cried.

He waved his wand. The stuffed Yeti standing by Grindelwald sprang to life and attacked. Neville normally wasn't good with these kind of spells, but his wife was in danger, and that gave him the boost he needed to work the spell correctly.

Grindelwald blasted the Yeti with the Killing Curse, accomplishing nothing since the beast was already dead.

Luna crawled out from her hiding place and copied Neville's actions. She pointed her wand at a Lock Ness Monster and the beast sprang to life and attacked Grindelwald.

Grindelwald backed away from the creatures. He wasn't afraid, but he knew when to retreat. He made his way to the door, throwing Killing Curses everywhere.

"You lucked out this time!" he cried, before closing the door behind him.

Neville and Luna had to wait for the doors to stop spinning before their door unlocked. When it did, they ran into the circular room. Grindelwald was gone again. A few seconds later, Harry and Ginny entered the circular room followed by Ron and Hermione shortly after.

"Any luck?" Harry asked.

"We saw him!" cried Neville. "But he got away again."

"Where was he?" asked Hermione.

"In this room filled with all these stuffed animals." said Luna. "And guess what we saw in there?"

"Not now." said Neville.

"Ok, so we know he's still here somewhere." said Harry. "He's obviously not in any of the rooms we came out of right now. Lets keep looking."

They split into their groups again and chose a different door.

"I'll go first this time." said Ginny.

She opened a door and checked to make sure it was safe. She motioned for Harry to follow her. He was about to but something stopped him. From the ceiling dropped Grindelwald changing back from his spider form. He waved his wand and the door closed behind Ginny.

"Har-"

Ginny was cut off by the door slamming shut. All the doors began rotating, leaving Harry alone with Grindelwald.

"It's just you and me now, Harry." said Grindelwald.

He began spinning his wand over his head. A light shined from the end of his wand. A glowing halo now floated over Grindelwald's head. It spread out until it connected with the spinning wall. Harry wasn't sure what Grindelwald had done.

"Now there will be no interruptions." said Grindelwald.

Harry wasn't sure what he meant. The doors would stop spinning and he knew nothing would stop Ginny from joining the fight. But the doors didn't stop spinning. They didn't even slow down.

Now Harry was starting to catch on. Grindelwald must have cast a spell to make the doors continue rotating. How long it would take for the others to break Grindelwald's spell, he didn't know. But for now it was indeed just him and Grindelwald. The Lord of the Dead.

"Now Harry Potter, you die!" yelled Grindelwald, raising his wands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Ok, so not all that much fighting in this chapter, the next one will be better though. And I have a bit of a surprise. There is something important from one of the other books that was mentioned that I will bring up next chapter.)


	16. Love Conquers All

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: This chapter is very important. It may confuse you at the end, but all will be explained in the next chapter.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Chapter 16: Love Conquers All**

Ginny hammered on the door. Harry needed her, now! True he was the most powerful wizard, but Grindelwald was a psychotic murderer. Not to mention the cheat had two wands.

" _Alohomora!"_  she cried. The door still didn't unlock.  _"Reducto! Reducto! Damn it! Reducto! Diffindo!_ Come ON!  _Finite Incantatem! Incendio! Specialis Revelio! Sectumsempra! Reducto!_ COME ON, DAMN  _YOU!"_

The door remained locked and intact. Ginny threw herself at the door and pounded it with her fists again. She needed to get out of here. Harry was in trouble.

"Harry! Harry!" she shouted, hoping he could hear her. Tears began pouring down her cheeks and she started sliding down the door, onto her knees. "Harry please. Please. I can't loose you. But I can't get out."

She wiped her eyes and took on a determine look. "But I'm not stopping! I am not going to stay locked up in here while you duel him alone! You just better stay alive until I get there!"

Grindelwald sneered at Harry. He obviously thought he had this battle won. And the truth was that Harry was in trouble. He may be the most powerful wizard of all, but Grindelwald had a Horcrux. Harry had to destroy it if there was any hope to defeat Grindelwald.

"What's wrong Potter?" asked Grindelwald. "Not feeling so confident without your friends?"

Harry glared at him. "No, actually I'm glad they're out of danger for now."

Grindelwald laughed. "Oh Potter, you are so much like Dumbledore. Always putting others before you. Did you know it was I that gave him that scar on his left knee that he says looks like the London Underground? And you have your scar that your greatest enemy gave you. Yes, you're just like him. I guess that in a way, I'm still getting to kill the old fool. I see him in you. You even have the same twinkle in your eyes. I look forward to draining the life from them. And after that, do you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to bewitch your body and have it attack your friends. In a way, you will be responsible for their deaths."

"You're forgetting something." said Harry. "I might kill you and save the world again. But first,  _Accio Horcrux!"_

Grindelwald seemed to be waiting for Harry to react. He blocked Harry's spell, then sent his own. But it was not the Killing Curse. It was the Cruciatus.

Harry blocked the spell. He wondered why Grindelwald didn't use the Killing Curse. Grindelwald knew Harry could block it, everyone did, but he could also block the Cruciatus Curse. So why use it?

Regardless of the reason Grindelwald hadn't used the Killing Curse, it was good for Harry.

" _Stupefy!"_  he cried.

" _Protego!"_  cried Grindelwald.  _"Reducto!"_

Harry barely managed to get his shield up in time. The force of the spell threw backwards. He fell against the wall, which was spinning so fast that he was thrown forward again. Grindelwald raised his wand with a triumphant look on his face. But suddenly he took on a very annoyed look.

" _Crucio!"_

Harry was filled with the greatest of pain. Using all his strength, he pointed his wand at Grindelwald.

" _Stupefy!"_

Grindelwald used his second wand to block the curse while his own continued to torture Harry.

" _Levicorpus!"_  thought Harry.

He felt the pain stop as Grindelwald was suspended into the air. The pendant started to fall from Grindelwald's neck. He grabbed it and held it in place. Harry took the opportunity to get to his feet. He didn't think Grindelwad knew the counter curse. But it didn't matter. As he sent a stunner at him, Grindelwald cried  _"Finite Incantatem!"_  and the stunner missed him as he fell.

" _Diffindo!"_  cried Grindelwald, waving his first wand.  _"Reducto!"_  he cried out, waving his other one.

" _Protego!"_  Harry cried.  _"Petrificus Totalus!"_

Grindelwald rolled out of the way.

" _Stupefy!"_

Harry tried to apparate, but couldn't. It appeared that the Department of Mysteries was an anti-apparation zone.

Unfortunately this resulted in Harry getting stunned. He fell to the ground, Grindelwald walked over to him and kicked his wand away. He grinned at Harry. Then his eyes narrowed and he looked annoyed again.

" _Ennervate!"_

Harry was no longer stunned. He looked up at a very sour Grindelwald with a confused look.

"I'm curious to know, Harry, how did you survive Lord Voldemort all those years ago?" Grindelwald asked. "I was in Azkaban at the time and never got the full story."

Was this why Grindelwald didn't kill him? He was curious? Or was he worried?

"It was because of my mother." said Harry. "Voldemort only wanted me, but my mum refused to let him near me. She sacrificed herself for me."

Understanding was shown over Grindelwald's face. He threw his head back and laughed.

"So that's it?" he said, still laughing. "That explains everything. To think that the Dark Lord overlooked the blood protection sacrifice. What a fool. And here I thought you had some special unknown power. I have nothing to fear from you."

Now Harry understood. This was why Grindelwald hadn't used the Killing Curse on him. He thought that what happened to Voldemort might happen to him.

"Time to die!" Grindelwald declared.

He raised his wand.

" _Accio Wand!"_  thought Harry.

" _Avada Kedavra."_

" _Protego!"_

Harry hoped he could block the curse. In order for his shield to hold he had to empty himself of all negative thought and let his love for his friends and family fill him, and at the moment he was finding that difficult.

Thankfully the shield held, but Harry still felt an enormous shockwave from the spell that slid him several feet across the floor.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_  cried Grindelwald.  _"Avada Kedavra! Avada Kedavra! Avada Kedavra!"_

Harry's shield was weakening. A shield spell could only take so much before it shattered. He let the thoughts of his loved ones fill him and cried out,  _"Protego!"_  strengthening his shield some more.

"You can't block me forever." laughed Grindelwald.

"Then I'll attack!" Harry shouted.  _"Sectumsempra!"_

Grindelwald was surprised by the spell. He had never heard it before, since he was locked in Azkaban when it was invented. But regardless of that, he still blocked the spell. Then he cast two Killing Curses at the same time. One aiming at Harry, the other at the ground.

Harry blocked the one coming for him, but the ground exploded at his feet. He went flying through the air and landed hard on his back. Grindelwald approached him with both wands raised. But the sudden stop of the doors rotating caught his attention.

"Damn, they figured it out." Grindelwald said to himself. He turned back to Harry.  _"Avada-"_

" _Avada Kedavra!"_

The spell hit Grindelwald in the back. His mouth dropped open in shock and he fell forward on his face.

Harry looked to see who had saved him. Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Luna were all in the room, but Ginny was the one who had her wand pointing at Grindelwald.

"Harry!"

"Ginny!"

The two ran to each other and embraced. They broke apart and kissed hungrily.

"Oh Harry, I was so worried about you." said Ginny, hugging him so tightly he could barely breath. But Harry was hugging her just as tightly.

"I'm fine, Gin." he said, kissing her forehead. "Thanks to you."

"Bloody hell, Ginny!" exclaimed Ron. "You did it."

"But I thought he couldn't die unless his Horcrux was destroyed." said Hermione.

"I can't!"

Grindelwald jumped to his feet and fired a Killing Curse. Harry immediately cast a Protego, protecting his friends. But Grindelwald was throwing curses so fast that Harry's shield was quickly weakening.

Finally it happened. One of the curses shattered his shield.

" _Avada Kedavra!"_  cried Grindelwald triumphantly.

Harry was exhausted and couldn't manage it. Several hands grabbed Harry and threw him backwards.

" _Protego!"_  cried five voices.

The shield was huge. A giant solid golden wall appeared to block the curse. The wall didn't even tremble as the curse hit.

"You can't beat us Grindelwald." said Ron. "Not when we're working together."

"That's right." said Luna. "And we'll always be here for each other."

Grindelwald put on a touched look. "Oh how sweet.  _Finite Incantatem!"_

The shield vanished, leaving them vulnerable. Grindelwald waved his second wand and all six of them flew backwards and got stuck to the wall. Another wave of the wand and they lost their own wands.

"I got you now." said Grindelwald. "Now you're mine."

He walked back and forth staring at them with amusement.

"Normally I'm not one to play with my victims, but this time I'll make an exception."

He waved his wand and Ginny fell to the floor.

"It wasn't very nice for you to attack me from behind." he said to her. "I think I'll start with you.  _Crucio!"_

Ginny cried out in pain as Grindelwald cursed her. Her screams were more painful for Harry than the Cruciatus Curse itself. He couldn't stand to see her hurting like this and he began to struggle against the force holding him to the wall.

"Don't bother, Potter." said Grindelwald in an amused voice. "You can't get down without your wand, unless I allow it."

He turned back to Ginny and cursed her again. Harry couldn't take this.

"LEAVE HER ALONE!" he shouted.

With an enormous amount of effort, he pushed himself off the wall. Without hesitation, he crawled on top of Ginny and shielded her from the curse with his own body.

"You want to take her place, Potter?" said Grindelwald, sounding even more amused. "Fine with me.  _Crucio!"_

Harry cried out in pain. But this pain was worth it to stop Ginny from hurting.

"Harry." Ginny whispered.

"Ginny." he whispered back.

Suddenly something completely unexpected happened. There was a flash of light from one of the doors. A golden beam of light came through the door, which remained closed. It approached Harry and Ginny. The end of the bead of light went in two separate direction. One touched Harry, the other touched Ginny. They were connected by the beam of light coming from the door.

There was another flash of light and the pain of the Cruciatus Curse left Harry. Grindelwald was thrown backwards as his spell broke.

"What in the name of Merlin!" he cried.

Harry got to his feet and Ginny stood up next to him.

" _Harry."_

" _Ginny."_

It was weird. He heard her as if she was in his head. He looked at her and saw she looked just as confused.

" _What happened?"_  he thought.

" _I don't know."_

" _Ginny?"_

" _What?"_

" _How did… you… I can hear you in my head."_

" _And I can hear you in mine."_

" _What's going on? How is this possible?"_

" _I don't know, but I like it."_

Harry did too. He felt so alive. So connected to Ginny that it was as if they were one. He could hear their hearts beating together in unison. The beam of light was still keeping them connected. Whatever it was it felt good. It felt like… love.

"What's going on?" Grindelwald demanded, getting to his feet.

Harry and Ginny turned their attention to him. While they were together like this, it felt like they could do anything. That everything was going to be ok. They held hands and stared at Grindelwald.

"It's over Grindelwald." they said together. "You have no power over us."

Grindelwald glared at them. "I'll show you power.  _Crucio!"_

The spell came at them, but somehow they knew it would be ok. And it was. The spell bounced off them. They barely felt the spell touch them. It just bounced off and hit the wall.

"Impossible!" Grindelwald gasped. "Fine, I'll just end it.  _Avada Kedavra!"_

Still Harry and Ginny didn't react. Something was still telling them it would be alright. And just like the Cruciatus Curse, the Killing Curse bounced off them too.

"How can this be?" cried Grindelwald. "It's like you're untouchable.  _Avada Kedavra! Crucio! Reducto! Diffindo! Incendio! Stupefy!_  There has to be something!  _Impedimenta! Confundo! Finite Incantatem! Immobulus! Incarcerous! Relashio!"_

Grindelwald kept throwing a verity of curses, trying to find one that would affect them. But none worked. Every spell he used just bounced off. He finally stopped when one of his one spells hit him.

"What have you done?" he asked. "And what is that beam of light?"

"We don't know." said Harry and Ginny, talking in one voice. "But we do know that you're finished. We will do what we must.  _Accio wand!_ "

Their wands flew into their hands. Harry's went into his left since they were still holding hands. They pointed their wands at Grindelwald.

" _Tactus Amor!"_  they cried together.

They did not know what the spell was or where it came from, but something was telling them to use it. A jet of hot pink light flew out of their wands and struck Grindelwald in the chest. Grindelwald gasped as the pink light began to engulf him. His body began to smoke where the light was covering him. The light engulfed his wands and the exploded into a thousand pieces.

Finally his whole body was surrounded by the pink light. The pendant around his neck shattered. Grindelwald's mouth dropped open. A noise that sounded the air coming out of a tire escaped his mouth. His eyes rolled up into his head and he collapsed. The light faded and Grindelwald remained motionless. He was very, obviously, clearly dead.

The beam of light connecting Harry and Ginny left them. They felt the sensation that was filling them leave too. The light retreated back into the door it had come from.

The silence was broken by Ron. "What the bloody hell just happened?"

Harry and Ginny turned to him. He was completely shocked, as were the others.

"I have no idea." said Harry. "But I liked it."

"Me too." said Ginny.

Whatever the light had done to them, it left them feeling a deep need to be as close to the other as possible. The two of them looked at each other then kissed passionately. Ron looked away disgusted.

"Get a room." he said.

"A room." said Hermione. "A room. What is in that room?"

She approached the door that the light had come from. The door would not open. Not even when she used Alohamora.

"I think this is the door that we couldn't get into back in our fifth year." she said. "What is behind her?"

"There's only one person who would no the answer to that." said Harry. "And I'm sure he would be happy to hear that the Lord of the Dead is finally dead."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Confused? I'm not surprised. But who remembers this door being mentioned in the fifth book? In the next chapter, all will be explained. Until then, see ya!)
> 
> Tactus Amor - Feel the love.


	17. The Tragic Tale of Love and Hate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: This chapter gets a little farfetched, but I had to use my imagination a lot. This chapter will basically explain everything from last chapter and tell how everything was possible.)
> 
> Disclaimer: Happy birthday to me. I still own nothing.

**Chapter 17: The Tragic Tale of Love and Hate**

Harry knocked on the door to McGonagall's office. Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Luna were right behind them. They were all just as anxious to tell McGonagall and Dumbledore the good news, and to get an answer to what had happened at the ministry.

"Enter." said McGonagall.

The six of them went into the office to find a very nervous McGonagall pacing the room. She stopped pacing and looked at them in concern.

"Did you get it?" she asked.

Harry nodded. "Yes, and Grindelwald is dead."

McGonagall breathed a sigh of relief. Her nervousness vanished instantly to be replaced by overwhelming happiness.

"It's over then?" she said. "Oh thank Merlin! Did you hear that Albus? They defeated him!"

"Yes Minerva, I heard." said Dumbledore's portrait. "I am very relieved. You have put a stop to one of the most powerful Dark Lords. One I should have finished off years ago."

"Albus, don't dwell on the past." said Harry. "It's over now. Grindelwald is finished. The last Dark Lord is gone."

Dumbledore seemed startled by Harry's reply. But then he smiled.

"Harry, you have come so far since the last time I saw you when I was alive." said Dumbledore. "You went from an unsure child to become the most powerful wizard alive. You have saved the wizarding world countless times. I am very proud of you."

Harry felt embarrassed. "Thank you, sir. But if it wasn't for all of you, I never would have made it."

Dumbledore chuckled. "You are so modest Harry. You don't give yourself enough credit on things. But tell me, how exactly you defeated Grindelwald."

Harry told him how he and the others discovered where the Pendant of Le Fay was, how Grindelwald had taken it from him, and how he was defeated. Dumbledore was listening very carefully to everything he said. Especially the part about the beam of light coming from the door in the Department of Mysteries.

"Very curious." he said, when Harry finished the story. "Very curious indeed. Tactus Amor, eh? That is not a spell I am familiar with. Where did you learn it?"

"We didn't." said Harry. "I don't know where that spell came from, even what it did. I do know that it's Latin for 'Touch of Love', but that's it. Something was just telling us to use the spell."

"Very interesting." said Dumbledore. "Can you perform the spell again?"

Harry didn't know. He looked at Ginny. She didn't seem to know either.

"Er, I guess we can try." he said.

Harry and Ginny held hands. They raised their wands and cried  _"Tactus Amor!"_  Nothing happened. They lowered their wands, looking disappointed. However, Dumbledore didn't seem to be expecting anything.

"I didn't think so." he said. "The spell was part of the special power that was given to you two."

"What was it?" asked Hermione. "I tried to open the door, but couldn't. What's in that room?"

Dumbledore suddenly seemed uncomfortable. "It is difficult to explain without telling you the full story."

"So tell us the full story." said Ron.

Hermione gave him a disapproved look. She had obviously thought he sounded rather rude. Dumbledore didn't seem to care.

"Very well. Harry already knows a little bit of it."

"I do?" said Harry, completely confused.

"Yes, Harry." said Dumbledore. "We discussed it after your little incident at the ministry in your fifth year. I shall repeat myself for you and your friends. There is a door in the Department of Mysteries that is kept locked at all times. It contains a force that is at once more wonderful and more terrible than death, than human intelligence, than the forces of nature. It is the power that you posses in such quantities that saved you from Voldemort possessing you, and what took you to Sirius that night. The power that Voldemort had none of at all."

Now Harry remembered Dumbledore telling him this. He had been so upset about Sirius at the time that he didn't really think about it. Now he wanted to know.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Love." said Dumbledore simply.

"Love?"

"Yes, love. But not love, the emotion, but physical love. The power of love that is not an emotion or feeling, but an item."

Harry was completely lost. Apparently Hermione was too, for once.

"Sir, how can an emotion be something physical?" she asked.

Dumbledore sighed, just like he always did when he was about to tell a long story.

"I doubt it, but have any of you heard of 'The Tragedy of Elizabeth and Magnus'?" he asked.

The others shook their heads.

"I thought not." said Dumbledore. "It is a story that very few know, and even fewer believe, but it is true. It is a very old story. It happened many years ago. Before Hogwarts was founded. Before the time of Merlin. Even many years before Ollivander's was founded, which, if memory serves me right, was 382 B.C. I cannot tell you the actual date because I do not know.

"Anyway, these days, mostly in the muggle world, there are many stories of families that have two children, one good, one bad. All these stories relate back to the time of Elizabeth and Magnus. They were brother and sister. Twins in fact. And as the stories these days go, one of them was always kind and caring, the other was quite the opposite."

"Was I related to them too?" Harry asked. He actually wouldn't have been all that surprised if he was.

Dumbledore chuckled. "No Harry, you were not. Elizabeth and Magnus were the only remaining people in their family, and neither of them had any children. But that is not important. Elizabeth and Magnus may have been twins, but you couldn't find two people more different. Elizabeth was always loving and caring, never did a thing wrong. Magnus was always rather cruel and hurtful, always causing trouble. As the two of them grew, they each went in sure for what they wanted in life. Elizabeth explored the world, learning spells and using them to help others. She never touched the Dark Arts. But Magnus never touched anything  _but_  the Dark Arts. He became the first, and worst Dark Lord."

"Worse than Voldemort?" exclaimed Ginny.

"Far worse." said Dumbledore. "Voldemort would definitely have the second place title, but Magnus was far more twisted and evil. Some believed him to be too evil to be considered human anymore.

"However, he did not get that way on his own. He had… help, I guess you can say. Magnus was a dark wizard at the time, but he made a discovery that turned him into evil on two legs. Both him and his sister continued their search for power. They were heading down two very different roads. A road of darkness and a road of light. Their searches led them to the most powerful and most mysterious items in the entire world. Elizabeth found what she called the Orb of Light, while her brother found the Orb of Darkness.

"I honestly can not say where these items came from. Most likely they were here since the beginning of time along with many other natural magical items that just came to be. Regardless of how they were brought into existence, the Orb of Light was a solid form of love, and the Orb of Darkness was a solid form of hate."

"I've never heard of this." said Hermione.

"Nor have I." said Luna. "And I'm the History of Magic teacher."

"Not all events are recorded." said Dumbledore. "The truth gets lost, but never forgotten, as we have seen from all the stories that we have heard. Theses two items are in fact what inspired the symbol of the Yin-Yang. Anyway, the Orb of Light greatly increased Elizabeth's power. Her magic was fueled by love. It made her even more loving and caring than before. The orb was sort of a catalyst. Very much like our wands are. Only the orb increased her power and knowledge of spells greatly. You, of course, know that we can perform wandless magic, but some spells require the use of a wand. The orb worked the same way. Elizabeth could perform spells without it, but there were spells that required the use of the orb. I believe that Tactus Amor would be one of them.

"The Orb of Darkness worked the same way, only its powers were dark. Magnus became fueled by darkness. It corrupted and poisoned his soul. The more he tapped into the power of the orb, the more corrupted and evil he became.

"Shortly after the discovery of the orb, Magnus went from being a dark wizard to a Dark Lord. He started out similar to Voldemort. He wanted to rule over everything. He got followers and began to take over. But soon that wasn't enough. He became consumed by the evil of the orb more and more each time he used the orb's power. He didn't want to rule the world anymore. He wanted to destroy it. Wanted everyone and everything to die. But then that wasn't enough. He wanted everyone to suffer before they died. Not a man, woman, or child of any age was spared. It was in fact Magnus that invented the Unforgivable Curses."

"It's a shame those couldn't only be used with the orb's power." said Harry.

"I agree." said Dumbledore. "Unfortunately that was not the case. Even with Magnus gone it still seems that his evil has never completely left this world."

"But sir, what happened to him?" asked Hermione.

"Magnus discovered his sister's special power." Dumbledore continued. "He wanted her dead. He felt that if anyone could stop him it would be her. It wouldn't have mattered. He would have killed her just the same eventually, regardless of her possession of the Orb of Light. He tried to draw her out. But Elizabeth couldn't face him. He was her brother, regardless of how twisted and evil he had become. But one day he did something that forced her to face him."

"What did he do?" asked Neville.

"He destroyed their home." Dumbledore said sadly. "I believe you have all heard the legend of Atlantis." They nodded. "It was where both Elizabeth and Magnus grew up. He sank the entire city into the sea, killing everyone in it."

"He sank a whole  _city?"_  gasped Ginny. "Is that possible?"

Dumbledore nodded. "With the Orb of Darkness it was. And as you can see, something like that could never be forgotten. Even if it is believed to be legend."

"What did Elizabeth do?" asked Harry.

Dumbledore frowned. "She knew that her brother could not be allowed to keep up his reign of terror. She finally went out to face him. When she saw her brother she barely recognized him. He had gone far past the point of no return. He had become more evil than humanly possible, thanks to the power of the Orb of Darkness.

"The two of them tapped into the limit of their powers. Down to the very core of their orbs and began to fight."

Dumbledore rubbed his eyes as if what he was going to say next was ever hard.

"The battle was over in less than a minute. Elizabeth quickly overpowered her brother. Love his far more powerful than hate. Magnus didn't stand a chance. Not even at his most powerful moment. He was defeated. The Orb of Darkness shattered, and its power were destroyed.

"But the thing that makes this story a tragedy is what Elizabeth did to Magnus. She didn't even mean to. It happened when she used the full power of the Orb of Light."

Dumbledore was stopped talking. He was quiet so long that Ron finally had to say, "So, what happened?"

Dumbledore sighed before continuing. "The power of the Orb of Light could destroy evil. Had Elizabeth used it on an average dark wizard it would have purified him."

"You mean turn them good?" asked Harry.

Dumbledore shook his head. "Not exactly. It would destroy the evil in their heart. Empty them of the darkness until only the good was left. Just think of it as a pool of water that has been polluted. You can clean out the pollution and the water will be left pure.

"Unfortunately for Magnus, this was not the case. There was no good left in him. None at all. He was completely, totally, one hundred percent evil. Think of the polluted water again, and imagine the water evaporating only the pollution is left. It was like this with Magnus. There was no good, only evil left."

"So he couldn't be helped?" said Ron, trying to understand.

"No, it was worse." said Dumbledore. "The darkness in him was destroyed. But he now had nothing left. He was an empty pool. No water, no pollution, nothing. His very soul became a shell."

"So it was like he got the Dementor's Kiss." said Neville.

Dumbledore made a 'sort of' gesture. "Well yes, but more serious. With a Dementor's Kiss, the dementor sucks out a person's soul. The soul is then held within the dementor and prevented from passing over to the next life until the dementor dies, which could take centuries. The body is left as an empty shell with no self, since the person's being is within the soul.

"This is similar to what happened to Magnus, only it was his soul, not his body that was emptied. His very soul was in the same condition as a person's body that was Kissed. And there was no help for him. He died shortly after, but his soul was beyond repair, and it shall forever remain that way."

"Is that what we did to Grindelwald?" cried Harry fearfully.

He didn't think anyone deserved such a fate. He didn't know what he would do if he did do that to Grindelwald, even if the man was a psychotic murderer.

"No Harry, it's not." Dumbledore reassured him. "When Elizabeth did that to her brother, she was holding and tapping into the strongest depths of the Orb of Light's power. You merely scratched the surface. I believe yours and Ginny's love is what activated the orb's power. In your case it seems that Grindelwald's power broke, or at least his dark powers. That would explain why his wands exploded. It wasn't even the spell that killed him. It was the destruction of his Horcrux.

"A Horcrux is an item of great evil. The love within the spell was enough to destroy it. As far as I'm concerned, Grindelwald was far past his dying day. Wizards normally live to be twice as long as muggles. The oldest any wizard has ever lived, not counting my good friend Nicholas Flamal, was 207. Grindelwald was 284. His Horcrux was all that was keeping him alive. Without it he perished almost instantly."

Harry breathed a sigh of relief. He heard Ginny next to him do the same. He reached for her hand and squeezed it.

"What about Elizabeth?" asked Hermione.

Dumbledore bowed his head. "She was devastated. She couldn't take the guilt. And she didn't want anything like this to happen again. This is why the Orb of Light is more wonderful and terrible than death. It can do great things, yet it managed to bring a fate worse than death. A fate worse than insanity. A fate worse than the Dementor's Kiss. And it was to someone that Elizabeth loved. She didn't want to hurt her brother, and she completely destroyed him. She didn't want this to happen again. She hid the orb and sealed the door for all eternity. The only way she could do this was by locking herself into the room with the orb. By doing this, she ensured that there is no way into the room. Elizabeth stayed locked away in the room until she died.

"Although no one can ever reach the orb, it still gives off the smallest bit of energy. It merely takes an enormous amount of love to activate it. Love is a very powerful thing. As long as there are those that love, evil will never triumph."

Dumbledore wiped a tear from his eye and smiled. "I have kept you here quite long enough. You have just been through a great deal. You should go and spend time with your families. It fact, we all should. Don't you agree Minerva?"

McGonagall nodded, "I do. I'll arrange it so the students may have off for a week to visit their families."

"Thank you." said Harry. He and Ginny had just defeated a powerful dark wizard and wanted nothing more than to spend time with their loved ones.

They left McGonagall's office and headed for the Gryffindor common room to pick up their kids. Harry looked at Ginny and squeezed her hand. She smiled at him and he smiled back. They had once again been faced by a great evil and their love had once again allowed them to be victorious. This was proof that love truly does conquer all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Well, that takes care of that. The Epilogue is up next. Hope you'll all be there for it.)


	18. Epilogue: The End of Another Year

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: Oh my gosh! This is really it. The end of my Harry Potter saga. It's too painful to think about it! Please, just enjoy the final chapter.)
> 
> Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

**Epilogue: The End of Another Year**

The Hogwarts Express made its way back to King's Cross. The year had come and gone, and the students and teachers were heading back home for summer holiday.

"I'll bet Dobby, Winky, and Buddy will be happy to see us again." said Harry.

"Happy is an understatement." said Ginny. "Remember how excited they were to see us during Christmas break."

"I wish we had a house elf." said Ron. "But no. Hermione won't let us have one- OW! Why'd you hit me?"

The others laughed as Hermione glared at Ron.

"So, what are you doing over break?" asked Neville.

"We're going on a two week cruise." said Harry. "It will be good to get away from all these reporters. Especially Rita Skeeter. I'm going to have to get another magical restraining order. Hopefully this reporter spree won't last as long as it did with Voldemort. How about you guys?"

"Niagara Falls." said Neville. "I can't wait. It should be fun."

"And what about you guys?" asked Luna.

"Egypt." said Hermione. "I've always wanted to go there."

"I've already seen Egypt, but it was really cool, and I don't mind going again." said Ron. "What's that?"

He pointed out the window. An owl was flying outside.

"That would be for me." said Harry.

He opened the window to let the owl in. He took the envelope and opened it.

"Yup, just as I thought." he said before sealing it again and handing it back to the owl. "Bring this to Michelle."

The owl hooted and flew back out the window.

"What was that?" asked Neville.

Harry smiled. "Oh, just a favor for Michelle."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

"So you guys glad you're done with school?" asked Danny.

"Well, yes and no." said Jack.

"What do you mean?" asked Jamie.

"Well it's good to be finished, but at the same time it's kind of sad to know that I won't be going back." Jack explained.

Alexis nodded. "I know what you mean. But at least we can get started on our careers. What are going to do Jack?"

"Professional Quidditch." said Jack proudly. "You?"

"I'm going to be a Healer." replied Alexis.

"Well everyone can see you two have that in the bag." said Josh.

Suddenly Michelle let out a cry of joy and opened the window to let an owl in.

"What's that?" asked Danny.

"Remember our bet from the beginning of the year?" she said. "Well I asked Dad if he could get me my end of the year exam results ahead of time."

Michelle looked down at her grades.

"How'd you do?" asked Jamie.

Michelle finished reading her grades then turned to her brother. "Looks like you owe me 10 Galleons." she said sweetly.

**THE END**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N: It's… it's over. Four stories 10 and a half months, and it finally comes to an end. I hope you all have enjoyed my writing. I would like to thank everyone who has taken the time to read my writing and those who have left me reviews. They mean more to me than you can possibly imagine. Now I'll sit back and wait for the actual 7th book to come out. HARRY POTTER FOREVER!)

**Author's Note:**

> (A/N: First chapter and Harry already has an enemy. I couldn't resist giving Umbridge her fate. I so hated her, and I felt like her role in the books wasn't over yet. I'm sure you all have questions about what's going on, but all will be revealed. I will be dropping hints on events to come throughout the chapters. See if you can put them together and figure them out before I reveal them. Until next time.)


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